Harris allies: ‘How could you not vote for Kamala?’

NORTH CAROLINA A&T STATE UNIVERSITY

Vice President Kamala Harris, the presumptive Democratic party nominee for president, has galvanized the coalition Barack Obama rode to victory in North Carolina in 2008: Black, women, and young voters.

Kaitlyn Hardy sees herself in Kamala Harris.

A sophomore marketing major at College of Charleston, Hardy said Harris’ background as a working-class Black woman with moderate political leanings gives them shared experiences that makes the vice president and presumptive Democratic nominee worth supporting in November’s election.

“In my opinion as a Black female, how could you not vote for Kamala?” asked Hardy, who lives in Blythewood, South Carolina. “Voting for [Donald] Trump is a vote for someone who wants to implement policies that will affect your body and put minorities of all ages, demographics backwards as a society. … I know that the young Black community will consistently vote for her, because Kamala has been in our position as young Black women, and men, we know that she will do all in her power, to continue to uplift and support our community. And I want to elect someone in a position who truly cares for the better of the people.”

That kind of energy has followed the Harris campaign since President Joe Biden stepped aside as a candidate on July 21 and endorsed her candidacy. Since then, supporters have raised more than $200 million and polls suggest a close race between Harris and Trump – a reversal of surveys that suggested Trump was pulling away after concerns grew about Biden’s fitness for office after a poor debate performance in June.

“I think what she brings to the ticket, first and foremost, it’s energy and enthusiasm that many people had thought was not there,” said Davidson College political science professor Susan Roberts. “The evidence of that is all the money coming in, the crowds, the good television coverage, and the fact that it makes people anticipate, gosh, can you see a debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump? I think it delivers a lot of enthusiasm by mobilizing the Black community, and not just because of sorority chapters with real strong and long and great ties and activism, but also it’s activated [Republican vice presidential candidate J.D.] Vance, [who] has made some very ugly comments, and I would say those comments galvanized a lot of people that insinuate that she is only there because she’s a Black woman.”

One asset Harris – the first Black woman to lead a major party ticket – is leveraging is a combination of governing experience and relative youth compared to Trump and Biden. At 59, Harris is 19 years younger than Trump and 22 years Biden’s junior.

“Vice President Harris’ rise in the polls to me is a big deal for both Black and young voters,” said Terrance Williams Jr., a seventh-grade social studies teacher in Columbia, South Carolina, and 2024 University of South Carolina graduate. “For Black voters, her candidacy is a chance to see someone who reflects their experiences and struggles in the highest office. It’s a powerful reason to get involved and vote.”

Said Courtney McClain, a graduate student at Howard University – Harris’ alma mater – and 2023 University of South Carolina graduate: “Vice President Harris’s identity as a Black woman, HBCU graduate, and AKA will have a positive impact on energizing voters within the Black community. “However, misinformation around her identity as a ‘top cop’ could serve as a barrier for Black voters who otherwise would vote for her as well. Misogynoir is still prevalent in our community, and when it is paired with the negative stereotypes about police in the Black community, it could impact the turnout of young Black voters negatively.”

Although North Carolina is a consistently Republican-leaning state, Harris’ entry in the race gives the Democrats a better chance at flipping its 16 electoral votes. Although Gov. Roy Cooper has removed his name from a short list of potential vice presidential running mates, Roberts believes Harris has the potential to be the first Democrat to win the state since Barack Obama in 2008.

The key, Roberts insists, is voter engagement and excitement. Biden struggled to tap into it; Harris, on the other hand, is rallying a coalition of Black voters, young people and women who support bodily autonomy in the wake of the Supreme Court’s 2022 reversal of Roe v. Wade.

“The secret formula to win an election is just simply turnout,” Roberts said. “It goes down to who turns out and who they’re going to vote for, and I think that energy may … make more voters enthusiastic, rather than ‘I don’t know I like him, Uncle Joe, but I just … think he’s too old,’ and there's no way to overcome that, as anyone would tell you. Kamala Harris has come out guns a ’blazing, and I think she's there. A lot of people thought ‘I haven’t seen her. She’s been invisible. What has she done?’ But I think she shows right now, she’s a very good campaigner.”

That’s what excites Williams.

“For young voters, especially those who’ve never voted before,” he said, “Vice President Harris’ success can be a huge motivator. Her policies and background resonate with many young people who want change in this country. Seeing someone like Harris in the spotlight can inspire them to make their voices heard.”
 

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