This year’s presidential campaign in the United States has already become one of the most dramatic in history. Just over a week ago, former President Donald Trump was shot at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania. On Sunday, President Joe Biden decided to withdraw as presidential candidate. Now Vice President Kamala Harris is sailing up as the Democrats’ favorite to challenge Trump in the presidential election on November 5, if she wins the party’s confidence at the national convention in August. news has spoken to three US experts about Kamala Harris’ chances of winning and the choices she faces. Sigrid Rege Gårdsvoll, journalist and commentator in Vårt Land and commentator for AmerikanskPolitikk.no Eirik Løkke, adviser at the liberal think tank Civita Henrik Heldahl, political journalist in Nettavisen and commentator for AmerikanskPolitikk.no Who can challenge Harris? Gårdsvoll: – Perhaps the most likely were governors Gretchen Whitmer in Michigan and Gavin Newsom in California. The two were mentioned most often. A third was Andy Beshear, the governor of Kentucky. He is young and has time to become a presidential candidate. Many in the party, including the three mentioned, have expressed their support for Harris. Løkke: – Right now it is difficult to see that anyone will try to challenge her. The main challengers have lined up behind Harris. It appears that the entire Democratic Party is now consolidating around the candidacy of Harris. Heldahl: – Now I think everyone understands that the only way they can manage to win is for the whole party to go in the same direction. That there is no point in jumping in and competing against Harris. It will look very selfish if a governor suddenly says “I want the nomination” in front of her who has Biden’s support. US Vice President Kamala Harris, along with a number of women in Phoenix, Arizona, marked on June 24 this year that it has been two years since the country’s Supreme Court overturned the Roe v. Wade ruling and with it removed the federal right to abortion. The abortion issue and women will be central if she is to win the presidential election. Photo: Rebecca Noble / Reuters What are Harris’ strengths? Gårdsvoll emphasizes that Harris is clear and sharp in his meeting with Trump. In addition, she highlights the following: Good in meeting people. Appeals quite broadly in the Democratic Party. Do better than Biden among younger people and people from minority backgrounds. Løkke points to Harris’ background as a woman and a minority as advantageous for the support and that she has qualities that she can use: Good when the issues are concrete. She did it sharply as the person responsible in the cross-examinations in the Senate in connection with appointments of Supreme Court judges. Good in smaller gatherings, where she can speak directly to people and come across as a warm personality. Heldahl believes that his professional background can be an advantage: As a public prosecutor, he was very strict with criminals and with that has a history that may appeal to voters in the city centre. Can raise the enthusiasm among women and people with an immigrant background, who supported Biden, but where he has lost support in the last year. … and weaknesses? Gårdsvoll highlights Harris’ failed presidential election campaign in 2019/2020: Delivered poorly in election debates. Didn’t get enough support from black voters, who went to Joe Biden instead. Has been quite invisible as vice president. Løkke says Harris often stumbles when she tries to talk visionary about politics: Had trouble formulating a clear program when she ran for president in 2020. Not sure how well she resonates with the white working class in the Midwest. She has something to prove in the election campaign. Heldahl points out that Harris is well to the left of the American political landscape and that she therefore has a job to do: must convince the white middle class that she is not too left-wing. Hasn’t previously had to win over voters in the middle because she comes from California, which is as far to the left as a major US state can be. Must reach working-class voters and non-college-educated white voters in the three key swing states of the Midwest; Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, which give the Democrats the shortest path to victory in November. May have greater appeal in the three swing states further south: Arizona, Georgia and Nevada. One of these could become Harris’ vice-president. If Kamala Harris is formally chosen as the Democrats’ presidential candidate, she must quickly decide who will become her vice-president. These are some of the people who may get the question. Rusty Jones / AP Roy Cooper, Governor of North Carolina Cooper is the governor of a strong Republican state. Trump won North Carolina in both 2016 and 2020. Despite this, Cooper has relatively strong support and is praised for his focus on economic development. Advantage of choosing Cooper: Governor of the swing state of North Carolina Status of Harris: Backing Harris KENT NISHIMURA / AFP / NTB Pete Buttigieg, transport minister Buttigieg stood as a presidential candidate in the 2020 election. When Biden and Harris won, he became transport minister in Biden’s government. He is the first openly gay person to have a place in the president’s cabinet. Buttigieg has also served in Afghanistan. Advantage of choosing Buttigieg: Has strong ties to the swing state of Michigan Status of Harris: Stands behind Harris Timothy D. Easley / AP Andy Beshear, Governor of Kentucky Andy Beshear is the governor of the heavily Republican state of Kentucky , where 25 percent voted for Trump in 2020. He has worked to prevent legislation banning abortions and gender-affirming treatment for transgender youth in the state. Advantage of choosing Beshear: Governor of the traditionally Republican state of Kentucky Status of Harris: Possible challenger to Harris AP Gretchen Whitmer, Governor of Michigan Whitmer has become very popular in Michigan through honest conversations and focus on everyday issues. She was considered as a vice-presidential candidate by Biden before Harris was finally chosen. A Harris-Whitmer combination would be historic as the first female duo in a US presidential election. Advantage of electing Whitmer: Governor of the swing state of Michigan Status of Harris: Standing behind Harris Manuel Balce Ceneta / AP Mark Kelly, Arizona Senator Kelly is both a former captain in the US Navy and an astronaut. Arizona is traditionally Republican, but Kelly has now been a senator there for two terms. Since Arizona borders Mexico, he has more weight in debates related to border control. Advantage of choosing Kelly: Senator in the swing state of Arizona Status of Harris: Stands behind Harris Matt Rourke / AP Josh Shapiro, Governor of Pennsylvania Shapiro became governor of Pennsylvania last year, but is already seen as a rising star in the Democratic Party. He is a trained lawyer and from 2017 to 2023 he was Attorney General of Pennsylvania. Advantage of electing Shapiro: Governor of the swing state of Pennsylvania Status of Harris: Backing Harris Charles Rex Arbogast / AP Jay Robert “JB” Pritzker, Governor of Illinois Billionaire Pritzker has contributed a lot financially to the Democrats. He is known for harshly criticizing Trump. Advantage of choosing Pritzker: As Governor, has made Illinois “the most progressive state” for reproductive rights. The state has become a place where people can travel to safely perform abortions. Status of Harris: Possible challenger to Harris Who will she choose for vice president? Gårdsvoll believes Harris should look for a politically moderate, white man, preferably from the Midwest. Roy Cooper, governor of North Carolina Josh Shapiro, governor of Pennsylvania Løkke says that the most important thing about a vice-president is someone who can take over as president on the day, while also complementing Harris politically. That is, one that has appeal in the white working class. Josh Shapiro, Governor of Pennsylvania Gretchen Whitmer, Governor of Michigan Heldahl believes the Democrats have never needed a boring white man from a swing state more than now. Josh Shapiro, Governor of Pennsylvania Andy Beshear, Governor of Kentucky, a state that the Democrats have not won in a presidential election since 1996 Can Kamala Harris beat Trump? Gårdsvoll points to opinion polls that were published before Biden resigned and which showed that Harris did better than Biden. Løkke believes that Harris has a good opportunity to beat Trump. – We must remember that she automatically gathers a very large “anti-Trump coalition”. Biden is in the White House because he is not Trump, and that will also be important in 2024. – Harris acts more presidential than Trump. Trump is his own worst enemy. The more he is in the media, the more he reminds voters that Trump is Trump. The question is whether Harris manages to exploit this. Heldahl also believes that Harris can win the election, but that Trump will start as favourite. – There is no doubt that she is the underdog as of now. This will happen in the run-up to the election in the USA. The Democrats will probably choose their presidential candidate through an online vote that ends on 7 August. This means that any counter-candidates to Harris only have this week to sign up. The final decision on who will be the Democrats’ candidate for president and vice-president will probably be announced at the national convention in Chicago. Donald Trump will meet the Democrats’ presidential candidate in a debate on ABC news. The verdict in the trial against Trump is scheduled for this day. Show more What matters will the duel be about? Gårdsvoll believes Trump will use Biden’s exit as a point of appeal against Harris and ask the following question: Has Harris withheld information about Biden’s health? What did she know and when did she know it? Løkke imagines that Trump will grill Harris on three claims in particular: Border policy and migration: In 2021, Harris did an interview with the TV channel about the US-Mexican border, which was described as disastrous. She cannot afford such blunders now. That, according to Trump, Biden has been the worst president ever, with a disastrous economic policy. That, according to Trump, Kamala Harris has stolen the nomination from Biden, and that he was pushed out of the election campaign. Heldahl points to areas where the election could be decided: The most important issues will be the economy, crime and immigration. Right now these are bad things for the Democrats and an important reason why the party is behind in the polls. Can Harris answer that? It is a big task. Harris must make the election campaign about her being a prosecutor and Trump being a criminal. Trump will use against Harris that she is from San Francisco and California, which is far to the left politically and has a bad image in the United States. The state is now associated with high taxes, evictions and homelessness. Published 22.07.2024, at 21.40
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Who will win and what will the duel be about? – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
