Politics / November 7, 2024

Kamala Harris Deserved Better—and There’s No Easy Explanation for Why She Didn’t Get It

Consider how resoundingly she succeeded in her 107-day campaign—and what that means about how deep the problems are that we need to solve.

Joan Walsh
Vice President Kamala Harris onstage at Howard University.

Vice President Kamala Harris concedes the presidential election at Howard University in Washington, DC.


(Justin Sullivan / Getty Images)

She deserved better.

Kamala Harris lost by such a large margin, it doesn’t make sense to me, right now, to look for reasons. Certainly not for the one obvious mistake made by her campaign that would have been a magic bullet in the race. We will find explanations, over time. But they will probably not be the reasons that are our priors. Except for my priors. She is a Black woman—and no, I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Trump’s two victories have come against female candidates.

Yes, there are other reasons, and we will find them. But watching Harris concede Wednesday at her Howard University alma mater, where the party for her expected victory had been staged last night, I just couldn’t blame her for anything. On social media last night, I called her flawless, but that’s silly; nobody is flawless. Yet consider how resoundingly she succeeded in her 107-day campaign: in eroding the polling gap between her and Trump once she became nominee; in wiping the floor with Trump in her one debate against him; at the convention; in raising more money, much more of it from small donors, than the Trump campaign did; in her ground game. As Glenn Thrush put it, “Democrats have thoroughly mastered/dominated the forms and conventions of big, normal American politics…. One problem: There is no such thing as normal American politics anymore.”

She advanced big arguments about the future of democracy at the same time as investing millions in reaching voters with ads about the cost of groceries and prescription drugs, and a truly transformative proposal to extend Medicare to cover in-home care. Should she have put more distance between herself and Joe Biden? Biden was hailed throughout his term as being the most labor-friendly president since FDR, for nominating agency heads that aggressively protected workers and consumers, and for passing legislation that would invest billions of dollars into on-shoring jobs. There are no easy answers here, and I think this week is for mourning, fury, and pulling ourselves together for the long struggle ahead. The people who elected Trump may not think of themselves as OK with fascism, but that’s what’s in store if we’re not ready to fight back.

I had to make a round trip from Harris’s non-victory party Tuesday night to her concession speech Wednesday afternoon. It was pretty devastating. There were many people crying. I might have been among them. It was a large enough crowd that I couldn’t find my daughter and her friend, yet there was a large empty space in the center of the courtyard that seemed to symbolize all the people who told pollsters they’d vote for Harris but in the end did not.

But Harris held her head up, so we must, too.

She gave no threat of insurrection, obviously: “A fundamental principle of American democracy is that when we lose an election, we accept the results,” she said. “That principle, as much as any other, distinguishes democracy from monarchy or tyranny. And anyone who seeks the public trust must honor it.”

But she went on: “At the same time, in our nation, we owe loyalty not to a president or a party, but to the Constitution of the United States, and loyalty to our conscience and to our God. My allegiance to all three is why I am here to say, while I concede this election, I do not concede the fight that fueled this campaign—the fight: the fight for freedom, for opportunity, for fairness, and the dignity of all people. A fight for the ideals at the heart of our nation, the ideals that reflect America at our best. That is a fight I will never give up.”

I found this next rumination stirring and yet a little sad too.

The Nation Weekly

Fridays. A weekly digest of the best of our coverage.
By signing up, you confirm that you are over the age of 16 and agree to receive occasional promotional offers for programs that support The Nation’s journalism. You may unsubscribe or adjust your preferences at any time. You can read our Privacy Policy here.

“The adage is, only when it is dark enough can you see the stars. I know many people feel like we are entering a dark time, but for the benefit of us all, I hope that is not the case. But here’s the thing, America, if it is, let us fill the sky with the light of a brilliant, brilliant billion of stars.”

I don’t actually know how we do that. There is no way to sugarcoat these results; no way to pick out silver linings in an environment in which the work to be done against fascism, and for rights, equality, and dignity for all, is so monumental. I could only take solace in one small moment of human connection at Howard, one that made me glad I’d done the round trip. An adorable Black toddler ran and threw herself into my arms. Her mom said her name was Joan (without knowing my name). As I stood there holding this bundle of happiness, her mom told me that her Joan is very shy and never does anything like that. Maybe this Joan will make the world a better place. We did not do that for her in this election, but we can’t stop trying.

Joan Walsh

Joan Walsh, a national affairs correspondent for The Nation, is a coproducer of The Sit-In: Harry Belafonte Hosts The Tonight Show and the author of What’s the Matter With White People? Finding Our Way in the Next America. Her new book (with Nick Hanauer and Donald Cohen) is Corporate Bullsh*t: Exposing the Lies and Half-Truths That Protect Profit, Power and Wealth In America.

More from The Nation

Lara Trump, Donald Trump's daughter-in-law, speaks in front of attendees during the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on December 4, 2024.

At CPAC Argentina, a Preview of Donald Trump’s Second Term At CPAC Argentina, a Preview of Donald Trump’s Second Term

A far-right international extending from Lara Trump and Steve Bannon to Jair Bolsonaro and Javier Milei joined reactionaries across Europe to promise no safe quarter for the left....

Jacob Sugarman

Representative Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R-OR) attends a signing ceremony in the US Capitol for a resolution that invalidates the District of Columbias Revised Criminal Code Act of 2022, on March 10, 2023.

Trump’s Pick for Labor Secretary Won’t Neutralize the Damage His Administration Will Inflict on Workers Trump’s Pick for Labor Secretary Won’t Neutralize the Damage His Administration Will Inflict on Workers

Lori Chavez-DeRemer is as good a pick for labor secretary as one could’ve reasonably hoped for. It’s also, unfortunately, smart politics for Trump.

Sasha Abramsky

Chuck Rocha appears on CBS News on November 5, 2024.

Democrats Should Listen to What Chuck Rocha’s Saying About Their Party Democrats Should Listen to What Chuck Rocha’s Saying About Their Party

The strategist who helped Bernie Sanders win the Latino vote took himself out of the race for DNC chair—but he’s still got lots of ideas.

John Nichols

King of Chaos

King of Chaos King of Chaos

When a clown moves into a palace, he doesn't become a king; the palace becomes a circus.

OppArt / Steve Brodner

President Joe Biden walks out of Nantucket Bookworks with son Hunter Biden, grandson Beau and daughter-in-law Melissa Cohen Biden in Nantucket, Massachusetts, on November 29, 2024.

OF COURSE Joe Biden Was Right to Pardon His Son OF COURSE Joe Biden Was Right to Pardon His Son

People need to stop asking Democrats to play by different rules than Republicans, and they need to stop asking Biden to be a worse father than any of us would be in his place.

Elie Mystal

Booked

Booked Booked

In the Constitution.

OppArt / Nasrin Sheykhi