Kamala Harris can turn things around and change the dynamics of the elections, says James Green

US Vice President Kamala Harris is already publicly acting as a candidate this Monday (22), after becoming the Democratic Party’s main candidate to take over the candidacy in place of Joe Biden. She received Joe Biden’s support for the Democratic nomination in the elections after the president withdrew from the electoral race this Sunday (21).

Kamala has become one of the favorites within the party to take on the candidacy and face Donald Trump, but this will only be confirmed at the Democratic convention. The main names in the party who could compete for the nomination with her have already declared their support. Until then, the scenario favored Donald Trump’s Republican candidacy.

Amid the highly polarized and uncertain political environment in the United States, James Green, a Brazilianist and professor at Brown University, offered the Red Portal an analysis of Kamala Harris’ possible candidacy and its impact on the presidential elections. From pessimism about Biden’s insistence on running, Green began to see Kamala’s eventual confirmation as a candidate as a victory. Especially because he already saw the female vote as decisive in this election.

Green believes that Kamala Harris has a good chance of turning the tide. “It’s very tight in the crucial states, these six swing states,” he explained, referring to Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, states that do not automatically fall to one party.

He said choosing a suitable vice president will be crucial for Harris. “A lot depends on how she gets a vice president, or vice president, to be nominated. And I think that will really change the dynamics of the campaign,” Green said, suggesting that Trump may be concerned about that possibility.

Before Kamala Harris’ suggestion, the professor compared Biden’s situation to Lula’s replacement by Haddad in the Brazilian elections in 2018, suggesting that a change of candidate now would be difficult to consolidate. “If the replacement candidate were someone else, it would be very difficult for him to run a successful electoral campaign,” he said, highlighting the pressure Biden faced from sectors of the Democratic Party and campaign financiers to leave.

Polarization and independents

Green also commented on Donald Trump’s controversial and reactionary speech last week. He noted the polarized reception to Trump’s speech, with his base strongly supporting him and his opponents emphatically rejecting him. “The country is totally polarized and the people in the middle, these so-called independents, I can’t understand their mindset,” he said. He stressed that the Democrats’ ability to mobilize their base will be key to the election.

Commenting on the current dynamics, Green highlighted that, until recently, factors such as the attack and the internal crisis in the Democratic Party favored Trump. “The polls indicate that he is ahead by one or two points in some key states,” he explained. However, he believes that women’s votes, especially in states with referendums on the legalization of abortion, will be crucial. “That will certainly mobilize women,” he said.

Impact of the attack and legal issues

Regarding the recent attack on Trump, Green compared the situation to the attack on Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil, suggesting that Trump is using the incident to gain sympathy among his supporters. He mentioned the giant bandage placed on his ear to highlight his victim status. “That just plays into his base. Because other people hate him, they don’t even care,” Green said.

He also addressed Trump’s legal issues, citing court rulings that have gone against him. “If he’s elected, he’ll end this process. If he’s not elected, he’ll be prosecuted or jailed,” he explained, highlighting the critical importance of the election to Trump’s legal future.

Who is Kamala Harris?

Kamala, 59, is the first woman to become vice president of the United States. With degrees in law and political science, she served as the city attorney for San Francisco and then the state attorney for California. Kamala also served as a senator for the state from 2017 to 2020.

She even presented herself as a pre-candidate for the White House for the 2020 elections and led some polls within the Democratic Party. However, she lost support and withdrew from the race due to lack of financial resources.

The daughter of an Indian mother and a Jamaican father, she was chosen to join the Democratic ticket to attract minorities, as she is a woman, black and the daughter of immigrants.

The choice of Harris was fundamental to Biden’s election, as it served as a lure to convince black voters to vote in the 2020 election.