Will Kamala Harris learn from Hillary Clinton's mistakes?

It's not easy to be a woman in this life, but in places such as Washington, DC, it feels it can be almost impossible to break the glass ceiling. Will things be different with Kamala Harris?

Kamala Harris is the second woman to achieve the Democratic nomination to run for President of the United States. The first one? Of course, Hillary Clinton in 2016. But will they get different results?

Harris and Clinton both had to run against the same man, New York mogul Donald Trump. It's hard not to make comparisons concerning the two of them, hoping that the real estate entrepreneur doesn’t become the first non-consecutive two-term President since Grover Cleveland.

Never miss a story! Click here to follow The Daily Digest.

Both Hillary Clinton and Kamala Harris have been regarded as the “establishment candidate” against Donald Trump, with Clinton serving as Secretary of State during the Obama Administration and Harris as Biden’s Vice President.

It’s no secret that after Joe Biden stepped from the race for the White House, virtually handling over the responsibility to Kamala Harris, chances for a Democratic victory became more tangible.

Donald Trump, which was feeling very comfortable running against Biden or “Sleepy Joe” as he would call him, seems at a loss at the possibility of facing Harris at the polls in November.

As Politico points out, the former US President has even struggled to find a nickname to deride Harris, going through “Laffin’ Kamala”, “Lyin’ Kamala” and “Crazy Kamala” before apparently giving up.

However, is it enough for Biden’s VP? Newsweek points out that by mid-August, Kamala Harris had a slight advantage of only 2.6% according to FiveThirtyEight’s national poll average.

Two months later, in October and with less than a month to go, Harris was surpassing Trump in only 2.8 points in the same poll. Still dangerous close to the Republican candidate.

In comparison, eight years before, in mid-August 2016, showed a 6.8-point advantage for Hillary Clinton.

And by October, mainstream news outlets such as CNN claimed that Clinton was as much as 12-point ahead from Trump, no wonder the Democratic Party got overconfident.

FiveThirtyEight’s poll average in August 2016 gave Clinton a lead of over 10 points over Donald Trump in key swing states, such as Wisconsin and Michigan. Harris, meanwhile, was barely surpassing the New York mogul, with less than four points in August 2024.

Something similar happened in Pennsylvania. Harris barely exceeded Trump with 1.7 points, while Clinton had an ample margin of 8.3 points. Ultimately, the New York mogul defeated the former Secretary of State in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania.

The 2016 polls also showed Clinton having an advantage over Trump in Florida, after leaning towards Obama in 2008 and 2012. It couldn’t be more wrong: the Sunshine State went for Trump in 2016 and seems backing Trump now.

Clinton, despite FiveThirtyEight’s national poll average, went on to lose the 2016 presidential election, despite winning the popular vote.

A piece by The Conservation argues that sexism was a major factor that affected Hillary Clinton when she ran against Donald Trump. However, the piece makes the case that Harris’s gender won’t be such a big deal in 2024.

A survey done by the University of Massachusetts reveals that 51% of Americans believe that the United States is ready to have a black, female US President.

However, the November election promises to be one decided by a very slim margin. Needless to say, it will be a historical election.

Never miss a story! Click here to follow The Daily Digest.

The New York Times writes that Hillary Clinton has become a key ally for Kamala Harris behind the scenes. Maybe the former Secretary of State wants to ensure Biden’s VP won’t make the same mistakes she did in 2016?