Refer Report
Supporters arrive before Democratic candidate Vice President Kamala Harris gives a speech at an election campaign held in Pennsylvania on the 30th of last month (local time). AP Yonhap News
Attention is focused on where the votes of white female voters will go in the US presidential election, which is just five days away. There is speculation that whether those who have sided with former Republican candidate Donald Trump in the past two presidential elections will turn to ‘Hidden Harris’ in support of Democratic candidate Vice President Kamala Harris will have a significant impact on the direction of the presidential election, which is a very close race.
On the 31st of last month (local time), the New York Times (NYT) reported that, according to an analysis by election strategists, the votes of white female voters, not black women or men, who are considered the Democratic Party’s ‘loyal’ votes, are the important variable that will determine the winner or loser of this presidential election. It was reported that it could be possible.
A white woman who gave a ‘bitter taste’ to the Democratic Party. Will this time be different?
White women supported the Republican Party in the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections, inflicting bitterness on the Democratic Party one after another. In 2016, 47% of white women supported former President Trump, and in 2020, 53% supported former President Trump, surpassing the approval ratings of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (45%) and President Joe Biden (46%), respectively. In particular, in the case of former Secretary of State Clinton, this result left a deep scar on the Democratic Party, given that she was the first female presidential candidate in the history of a major U.S. political party.
US presidential candidates Vice President Kamala Harris of the Democratic Party and former President Donald Trump of the Republican Party. AFP Yonhap News
There is speculation that the votes of white female voters could be another deciding factor in this presidential election, in which former President Trump will run for the third time. In particular, as this is the first presidential election to be held since the U.S. Supreme Court abolished the Roe v. Wade ruling that protected the right to terminate pregnancy at the federal level in 2022, white women are attracting attention as the decisive ‘swing voters’ who will decide the winner or loser. White women are the largest voting demographic in the United States, making up approximately 30% of the electorate, and have consistently shown high voter turnout.
A recent public opinion poll conducted by the NYT and Siena University showed that the two candidates are in fierce competition among white female voters, with Vice President Harris slightly ahead in approval ratings. The Democratic Party, which remembered the 2016 presidential election as a painful lesson, implemented a strategy to attract support from young white women by highlighting the issue of the right to terminate pregnancy. However, he has been cautious about raising the issue of gender itself and has focused on emphasizing the message, “I will be a president for all Americans.”
The NYT assessed that the Democratic Party’s attempt could be a difficult fight. This is because white women also cited ‘economy and inflation’ (29%) as their top concern. This was followed by the right to terminate pregnancy (24%) and immigration (14%). In general, former President Trump tends to have the upper hand on economic and immigration issues. In particular, non-college graduate women showed a strong tendency to lean toward former President Trump due to economic issues.
“A ‘Hidden Harris’ that even my husband doesn’t know about may appear.”
However, the NYT reported that there is a movement among white women who support the Democratic Party in this presidential election to persuade white women to ‘join the same boat’ in terms of pregnancy, childbirth, and women’s rights. The analysis is that a ‘Hidden Harris’ may emerge among conservative white women. Celinda Lake, a Democratic campaign strategist, predicted that there will be a “quiet” base of Harris supporters among white women who do not reveal it to their families or husbands.
Supporters arrive before Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at a campaign rally in Washington on October 29 (local time). AP Yonhap News
Former President Trump attempted to protect the votes of white women after Vice President Harris recently emphasized the ‘right to terminate pregnancy’ as a key issue. At a campaign rally in Green Bay, Wisconsin, on the 30th of last month, he claimed, “Whether women like it or not, I will protect them.” The NYT analyzed that former President Trump’s recent emphasis on himself as the “father of in vitro fertilization” was intended to woo female voters.
Vice President Harris is trying to hold on to white women until the last minute. On this day, while visiting Phoenix, Arizona, he criticized former President Trump’s remarks about protecting women, calling them “very insulting remarks that do not understand women’s identity.” He emphasized, “If Trump is elected, he will ban the right to terminate pregnancy nationwide,” adding, “We will not go back (to the past) and you must vote.”
Source: Korean