US Vice President Kamala Harris, representing the Democratic Party, failed to secure the magic number of 270 electoral votes required to claim victory.
As a result, she has been officially knocked out of the race for the White House.
Donald Trump, the Republican Party candidate, has secured an unofficial victory with 277 electoral votes, according to Fox News.
Harris, on the other hand, garnered 226 electoral votes, with 35 remaining votes yet to be accounted for.
The 2024 election marked a historic moment for the United States, as Kamala Harris, the first female and the first woman of colour to hold the position of vice president, became a serious contender for the presidency.
However, despite her landmark role, the electorate has yet to embrace female leadership at the highest level.
Harris, who was initially seen as a front-runner, had the uphill task of competing in a fiercely contested race, particularly with Trump’s appeal to male voters.
According to recent surveys, Trump has maintained a stronger connection with male voters, while Harris struggled to gain their support.
Analysts suggest that the American public is still not fully ready to accept a woman as president, despite decades of progress in gender equality.
This presidential race was also heavily shaped by historical shifts in American politics.
In 1919, the 19th Amendment was passed, granting women the right to vote. Margaret Chase Smith was the first female presidential candidate, running as a Republican in the 1960s, but she faced substantial gender-based bias and received little serious media attention.
The rise of women's political influence gained momentum during the 1970s and 1980s, notably with the increasing participation of women in the workforce, and continued to build through the feminist movements of the 1960s and 1970s.
The year 2008 saw Hillary Clinton make history as the first woman to seriously challenge for the presidency.
However, Clinton’s defeat to Barack Obama in the Democratic primaries highlighted the deep-rooted prejudices still present in American political life.
Despite her campaign’s ground-breaking nature, Clinton’s personal life, appearance, and voice were often the subject of unwelcome media scrutiny.
Clinton’s efforts continued in 2016, but despite winning the popular vote with over 30 million votes, she was defeated in the Electoral College by Donald Trump.
Kamala Harris’ own journey to the presidency was similarly marked by challenges.
In 2020, she made history as the first female and first person of colour to be elected vice president under Joe Biden.
Harris’ rise to political prominence symbolised a significant breakthrough for American women, especially women of colour, in a political landscape previously dominated by white men.
However, the current electoral setback serves as a reminder of the challenges that still lie ahead.
Kamala Harris’ presidential candidacy was an unexpected twist in an already unpredictable race.
Despite being a prominent figure, her path to securing the Democratic nomination was not as straightforward as it seemed.
She threw her weight behind Joe Biden’s candidacy during the 2020 primaries after failing to gain traction in the race.
Following Biden’s victory in the primaries, Harris served as his running mate.
Their win in 2020 cemented her position in American history as the first woman and person of colour to hold the office of Vice President.
Harris' announcement to run for president in 2024 followed a particularly intense period of political instability.
After Biden struggled in the first presidential debate with Trump in 2024, Harris was encouraged to step in as the Democratic candidate.
However, the shortened time frame for her campaign was an obstacle no previous candidate had ever faced. With just four months to campaign, Harris’ effort was extraordinary, but ultimately insufficient.
In a recent interview on ABC's "The View", Kamala Harris was asked by host Sunny Hostin if she would have acted differently from President Joe Biden over the past four years. To the astonishment of many, she replied, “There is not a thing that comes to mind. Not a thing.”
For a politician of her stature aiming to become the first female President of the United States, this response marked a rare and significant misstep.
The fallout was immediate. Within Democratic ranks, many saw this as a missed opportunity for Harris to define her own leadership style and policy direction, separate from Biden. Meanwhile, Team Trump quickly capitalised on the comment, amplifying it to bolster their narrative.
The incident was likened to a goalkeeper handing the ball directly to an opponent—an open goal seized by Trump’s campaign.
This perceived blunder is now emblematic of Harris’s challenges in the upcoming election. Observers note that the frustration within the US population, particularly regarding rising costs of essentials like fuel, groceries, and rent, remains unaddressed.
Biden’s handling of the Ukraine-Russia conflict has faced scrutiny for potentially exacerbating inflation and economic strain.
Furthermore, persistent supply chain issues and government spending have continued to fuel discontent.
Even within the Democratic Party, Biden’s approach to critical matters like immigration and border security has not found unanimous support.
Although Harris’s youth relative to Biden might have positioned her as a more relatable candidate, her campaign has yet to acknowledge these pressing concerns head-on.
Harris has also faced difficulty in resonating with the “progressive” faction of voters.
Her record as a prosecutor and attorney general, where her policies on “quality of life” crimes—such as loitering and truancy—and enforcement of the three-strikes law alienated many, particularly in communities of colour. Her reluctance to support the decriminalisation of sex work has also added to a perception that she prioritises a “tough-on-crime” approach over genuine progressive values.
In the post-Black Lives Matter era, where “tough on crime” stances are increasingly unpopular within progressive circles, this prosecutorial history has backfired.
Harris’s reputation as a “progressive prosecutor” has not managed to appease these voters, leading to a downturn in both her support and fundraising efforts.
Another divisive issue for Harris is the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Her steadfast endorsement of Israel’s “right to defend itself,” while acknowledging the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, has done little to set her apart as a candidate with a distinct stance.
Her response appeared too aligned with President Biden’s, and her lack of a bold stance on the subject has alienated progressive supporters, who are vocal on matters of international justice.
On the other hand, Trump has not experienced similar fractures within his base.
Despite frequent characterisations as a populist with extreme nationalist leanings, his supporters remain unwavering, showing a loyalty that resembles a “cult of personality.”
Trump’s ability to tap into sentiments of white identity and nationalism has fostered a following unparalleled by any recent Republican candidate, even figures such as Pat Buchanan or Ross Perot.
Ultimately, the unity within Trump’s support base, in stark contrast to Harris’s fractured following, appears to have shifted the political balance in his favour, leaving Harris on the back foot.
In the coming months, the political world will watch closely to see what path the Democratic Party takes, and whether Harris will remain an influential figure or fade from the national political stage.
