Abortion, girl power, and young voters:
This is how Kamala Harris plans to win the election

“Some of her biggest advantages are that she’s a woman and that she has a strong commitment to the issue of abortion,” Torbjørn Lindstrøm Knutsen tells NTB.

He is professor emeritus at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU).

Knutsen believes the abortion issue is Harris' most important, and that it will determine whether she can go all the way to the White House. USA expert Hilmar Mjelde at the Western University of Applied Sciences agrees:

“Harris will be able to elevate the abortion issue in a way Biden couldn’t. It has been a matter she has been notable for over many years,” he tells NTB.

The fact that Trump chose J.D. Vance as his vice president makes the abortion issue even more important for Harris, Knutsen believes.

“Trump himself has wavered and moderated his stance on abortion, but Vance has a history as a very strong opponent of abortion. So I think Harris' best card is to play on this issue,” he says.

Can counter Trump attacks

Knutsen also highlights Harris' energy as an important factor and believes that the Democrats can now turn Trump's repeated attacks on Biden's old age upside down.

The former president, who is himself 78 years old, has on several occasions accused the 81-year-old sitting president of not being mentally or physically fit to be president.

“The Republicans had prepared to beat Biden, but now the whole attack they had planned, an attack that included his son, family, and private affairs, is disappearing. If Harries now shows younger energy, and is active and smiling, she can accuse Trump of being the old one. This can help turn the game,” says Knutsen.

Young people, women, and people of colour

Harris has not yet been formally nominated as the Democratic presidential candidate, but it is clear that the idea of her candidacy is something that sparks enthusiasm in the party.

In the first 24 hours after announcing her candidacy, she raised over 80 million USD from wealthy supporters.

Mjelde believes that if Harris, who has a foreign background with an Indian mother and Jamaican father, can maintain such strong engagement, especially among young people, women, and black voters, she has a good chance in November.

“These are the party's core voters, and the enthusiasm we now see among these groups can be crucial. If she manages to maintain it, she must be seen as a slight favourite. These are very large voter groups,” he says.

A united party

Harris has already been crowned by a united Democratic Party, with several of the party’s biggest profiles giving their support to the sitting vice president.

Most recently were Barack and Michelle Obama, who announced that they fully support Harris. Biden pointed to her quickly, and then other heavyweights followed: Bill and Hillary Clinton, California Governor Gavin Newson, Nancy Pelosi, Senate Leader Chuck Schumer, and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer.

There is thus broad agreement in the Democratic Party that Harris should be president, but Mjelde believes that she now has to establish herself as a national leader for the entire American people.

“Voters must be able to imagine her in the Oval Office. The best opportunity for that is to respond resolutely to crises. The White House provides a good framework for this,” he says.

The same politics

Despite the Democrats getting a new candidate who is younger, female, and more energetic, the politics are mostly the same, both Mjelde and Knutsen believe.

“She’s not ideologically as pro-Israel as Biden, but otherwise, the Democrats are completely aligned in foreign policy,” says Mjelde.

He nevertheless emphasises that domestic policy is generally more important than foreign policy when it comes to presidential elections.

“I can't see any obvious differences between her and Biden. The economic policy is largely the same, and I think she will generally continue Biden's policy in the economic area. This has brought progress for the USA,” says Knutsen.

Border crisis could become an issue

One point that could weaken Harris is immigration policy and her handling of the southern border with Mexico. Early in her vice-presidential period, she was tasked with leading the Biden administration's efforts to stem the migration crisis, something that did not go entirely as planned.

“She was sent out by Biden to clean up, and it ended in a fairly large fiasco. In a famous speech, she urged migrants not to come to the USA, which is completely contrary to Democratic values. There she was too close to Trump,” says Mjelde.

He adds that this is where the Republicans will hammer away at her, just as they did with Biden.

Mjelde points out that Harris has performed unevenly in previous election campaigns and that she has struggled to profile herself as a leadership figure in the office of vice president.

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Translated by Alette Bjordal Gjellesvik

Read the Norwegian version of this article on forskning.no