“NO SAFE OPTION”
“If you think that there is consensus among the people who want Joe Biden to leave that they will support Kamala – Vice President Harris – you would be mistaken,” Representative Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez, a Biden supporter, said on Instagram. “There’s no safe option”.
The United States elected Barack Obama, the first and only Black president in 2008. The only woman to head a presidential ticket of a major party, Hillary Clinton, lost to Trump in 2016.
Supporters of Harris, the first woman and first Black and South Asian person to serve as vice president, argue she has already weathered unfair attacks related to her race and gender and is prepared for more.
“America has a history of racism, sexism, so I’m sure that will factor into this conversation, factor into her campaign,” said Jamal Simmons, a former Harris aide.
But he said there is a flip side: Black voters could be galvanized if Harris is put at the top of the ticket, and women, including some who regret not voting for Clinton in 2016, would back her as well.
“It’s also true that she will benefit from her race and her gender, that many African Americans may rally to her candidacy,” he said.
Harris benefits from greater name recognition than the other Democratic leaders who have been floated as potential presidential candidates, he said. California Governor Gavin Newsom and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer are among those talked about in Democratic circles as possible replacements.
“While she has flaws and faults like everyone, we know those flaws and faults, so you can build a campaign with clarity. Any other candidates are complete unknowns,” Simmons said.
One former Democratic lawmaker, speaking on condition of anonymity, said he thought Harris was a bigger risk because of her record than her race.
Harris was plagued by staff turnover at the beginning of her vice presidency and showed little progress on her portfolios of protecting voting rights and stemming migration from Central America.
“I think the race thing is just a compounding factor or an exacerbating factor,” the former lawmaker said. “Any of it’s going to be a gamble, but I like the odds with another candidate, even if that means Kamala at the top of the ticket”.
