Kamala Harris is going to win the 2024 Presidential Election because of how she is shaping her image to the American people. She is making herself out to be a relatively new member of the political scene, creating a “vibe train” of vague statements and policies to gain voters over Trump. She will also win because the qualities that gave Trump the final edge over Clinton in 2016 are no longer present in him but instead in Kamala Harris.
A quick clarification to begin–this article argues why Kamala Harris will be president, not why she should be president. Kamala Harris will be president because she currently holds the lead in the polls from almost all polling institutions, with an average 49.3% of the vote versus Trump with 46.5% of the vote. (Average from 14 sources on 270towin.com) Now, we could talk stats all day, but in 2016, Trump only had around 41% of voters compared to Clinton with about 46%, (According to projects.fivethirtyeight.com) and Trump won despite losing the popular vote.
If the polls don’t tell the full story, what was it about Trump in 2016 that gave him the election despite the odds? Well, first off, he wasn’t an old politician who had accumulated some bad blood over the years like Hillary Clinton. Trump had only recently stepped into the political scene—before he was seen as a successful businessman and actor (who could forget Home Alone 2)– and he was coming in with fresh ideas ready to take down the Democratic legacy that Obama had built over the previous eight years. Trump took every opportunity to make himself appear as opposite to Clinton as possible; he used language that suggested that he was hungrier and riskier, flying high with the phrases “Make America Great Again” and “Build the Wall.” Trump made himself a much more iconic character than any other politician Americans had ever seen, pushing conventional boundaries and insulting other candidates. Take the memory of campaign slogans, for instance: who remembers Clinton’s campaign slogan? It’s very difficult today to find somebody who doesn’t know MAGA but also knows “Stronger Together.”
Although that election was eight years ago, and Hillary Clinton has been relegated to relative obscurity, it’s still a point worth mentioning. Trump incited something in Americans that Clinton failed to do, and he rode that wave he started all the way to the White House in November. Despite what CNN reporters had to say about it, plenty of American people wanted the braggadocious Trump to win—and he did.
So how does this compare to today? Well, now Trump is the old boring politician that everyone is tired of, and Kamala Harris is the new, exciting candidate with fresh ideas, like Trump in 2016. If you were to ask an average American what they thought of Trump in 2016, they would probably say something along the lines of “unconventional, rebellious, snobby, wealthy, and American.” Today, you’d probably hear something like “arrogant, rich, criminal, and unsubstantial.” The controversial events of January 6th don’t help his cause either. Kamala Harris, on the other hand, is 59 years old in comparison to Trump’s over-ripe age of 78—also the same age as the infamously ancient Biden when he was sworn in January 2021. Trump also no longer has that “youthfulness” advantage over Biden since the president dropped out in July.
In short, people are tired of Trump today in the same way they were tired of Clinton in 2016. After all, he’s now the Republican nominee for the third time in a row, and he hasn’t really brought anything new to the table. Kamala is essentially acting as an anti-Trump in the same way Trump acted like an anti-Hillary, and nothing demonstrates this better than the presidential debate held on September 10th. It was clear from Harris’ body language and tone that she was on the attack against Trump (with some questionable assistance from the moderators). What further supports this theme is her campaign message about moving America forward, or in the official words of her campaign slogan, “We’re not going back.” These both very obviously are meant to counter Trump’s slogan “Take America Back.” She successfully set herself apart from Trump and made it clear that she wasn’t going to be a rambunctious and arrogant candidate like he was.
Of course, one can’t discuss the Harris-Walz campaign without talking about “vibes.” Kamala Harris has avoided interviews and has spoken very little about policies in her public appearances. What the American people have gotten instead are vague statements about the future, like how the lives of middle-class citizens will be improved, and one-liners including Kamala Harris’ favorite, “my only client is the American people.” And with constant talk about how Trump’s presidency is the worst thing that’s ever happened in the history of America, Harris will no doubt gain a lot of voters through people who are looking for any reason to not vote for the candidate who seems constantly full of himself. As long as Kamala can ride the “vibe train” without laying down too many policies or conducting too many interviews, it’s likely that many Americans won’t have any doubts this coming month about who they’re voting for. People know enough about her planning to raise income and corporate tax and reducing abortion restrictions that they can firmly put that “childless cat lady for Kamala” sign in their front yards.
