Summary

Gender bias played a significant role in Kamala Harris’s defeat, with many voters—often women—expressing doubts about whether “America is ready for a female president.”

Some said they “couldn’t see her in the chair,” or questioned if a woman could lead, with one even remarking, “you don’t see women building skyscrapers.” Though some voters were open to persuasion, this often became a red line.

Oliver Hall, a Harris campaign volunteer, found that economic concerns, particularly inflation, also drove voters to Donald Trump, despite low unemployment and wage growth touted by Democrats.

Harris was viewed in conflicting ways, seen as both too tough and too lenient on crime, as well as ineffective yet overly tied to Biden’s administration.

Ultimately, Hall believes that Trump’s unique appeal and influence overshadowed Harris’s campaign efforts.

  • Wes4Humanity@lemm.ee
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    13 days ago

    I think for a lot of people the choice ended up being between a quick leap into fascism or the ongoing painfully slow fascism temperature being risen one degree to keep the other guy from blowing it to 100, and I think more people than I’d have hoped decided to let the bandaid be ripped off

    • aesthelete@lemmy.world
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      13 days ago

      Less people than you think thought that was the choice. Americans are big time ignorant of politics and even on this site we had people asking if this was a normal election.

      According to those who voted, this election was about the economy. 🙄

      Most people probably couldn’t tell you the first thing about fascism or even capitalism.

      • Wes4Humanity@lemm.ee
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        13 days ago

        I wouldn’t say 5 million people thinking this way would be out of the question though… Would you? And are they polling the people who voted for Biden but didn’t show up this time? Because that data would be wildly valuable

        • aesthelete@lemmy.world
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          13 days ago

          It really wouldn’t shock me if a lot of the loss could be attributed to the fact that they couldn’t mail it in from the couch as easily this go around. I also think that people in this country are not as progressive socially as some of the most ardent people online like to pretend. Some simply didn’t want to vote for a woman…which is part of what the article says.

          • Wes4Humanity@lemm.ee
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            13 days ago

            I got 2 ballots mailed to me, and just had to fill one out and send it in. There’s no reason it couldn’t have been that easy for everyone. Anywhere that it was harder than that, I’d guess Republicans were behind it, but if it was Dems they should be kicked out of the party, if the party wanted to start leading the widely varied left.

            No one on the actual left wouldn’t vote for a woman because she’s a woman… These are mutually exclusive things