As a phone bank volunteer, I hoped to counter the Republican attacks and half-truths, but people really believed them, says journalist and podcaster Oliver Hall

Summary

Gender bias played a significant role in Kamala Harrisā€™s defeat, with many votersā€”often womenā€”expressing doubts about whether ā€œAmerica is ready for a female president.ā€

Some said they ā€œcouldnā€™t see her in the chair,ā€ or questioned if a woman could lead, with one even remarking, ā€œyou donā€™t see women building skyscrapers.ā€ Though some voters were open to persuasion, this often became a red line.

Oliver Hall, a Harris campaign volunteer, found that economic concerns, particularly inflation, also drove voters to Donald Trump, despite low unemployment and wage growth touted by Democrats.

Harris was viewed in conflicting ways, seen as both too tough and too lenient on crime, as well as ineffective yet overly tied to Bidenā€™s administration.

Ultimately, Hall believes that Trumpā€™s unique appeal and influence overshadowed Harrisā€™s campaign efforts.

  • EleventhHour@lemmy.world
    758Ā·
    5 days ago

    Iā€™ve talked to a lot of people, and I never once heard anyone complain about her gender. In fact, I was rather surprised that I didnā€™t hear anything about that. It was 100% complaints about the economy, and no matter how I tried my best to explain how not only are the price of things not Bidenā€™s fault, but we would have been much worse without Biden, it was like talking to a brick wall.

    • dhork@lemmy.worldEnglish
      466Ā·
      5 days ago

      I believe that there were a fair number of people who just couldnā€™t check the box for any woman, but weā€™re too afraid to admit it publically (or even to themselves). While their complaints about the economy were legit, they might have also been a convenient excuse to hide the misogyny.

      And didnā€™t Obama confront this head-on? He told Black men ā€œLook, you may not be inclined to back the woman here, but backing that man in particular would be a disasterā€. And he was dismissed by many as lecturing too much.

      • Wes4Humanity@lemm.ee
        51Ā·
        5 days ago

        I highly doubt he people who couldnā€™t check the box for a woman were part of the 10 million who showed up for Biden but not Harris. People made it perfectly clear what would get them to show up, and instead of listening she spit in their facesā€¦ Anyone who couldnā€™t bring themselves to vote for a woman was almost certainly a Trump voter start to finish