Understanding the Difference between the Biden and Harris Campaigns
By Kira Tarasova
On November 5th 2024 one of the biggest elections in the world will take place - the presidential vote in the United States of America. At first many believed the race to be a rematch of the 2020 election with Joe Biden vs Donald Trump. However, after a catastrophic debate on the 27th of June, Biden was comeplled to drop out of the race. After dropping out, the current president of the US has endorsed his current vice president Kamala Harris. In essence, both Biden and Harris have similar policies and electoral stance. Their campaigns do come with differences, though, with Harris doing significantly better in the polls. What is the difference between their campaigns?
Target audience:
Throughout his campaign, Biden has appealed to moderate democrats, the working class, older voters and disaffected Republicans. He centers his campaign on appealing as a centrist pragmatic leader, able to find a compromise between polarised groups and reach a consensus. Biden had little to no presence on social media (he has a registered a TikTok account, but did almost no campaigning on it).
Harris, on the other hand, has been aggressively targeting younger voters, people of colour, women and progressive democrats. The center of her campaign presents her as an energised “wake-up” call, able to engage minorities and younger voters (who have a smaller presence in elections traditionally). She does so by working with celebrities such as Megan Thee Stallion, Quavo, and Beyonce who join Harris at rallies and influence their audiences. Harris’s team is also on TikTok under “KamalaHQ” utilizing the platform to appeal to younger audiences. Her tam participates in trends and overall presents Kamala Harris as a younger, better alternative to Biden.
Campaign strategy:
Biden’s main emphasis was on serving a successful term as president. He also focused on presenting his 50-year experience in politics, which lead him to convey stability and competence as a candidate. Joe Biden’s campaign wass focused on creating an image of protecting healthcare, economic stability and gradual strengthening of the United States.
Harris’s campaign, on the other hand, focuses on being more progressive than her successor’s. She emphasises her career as a prosecutor and senator promising to bring justice to all. Her main focus is protecting democracy, women’s rights (especially after the overturn of Roe v Wade), racial equality and social justice.
Challenges in the campaigns:
In the recent few years, Biden’s biggest concern was addressing his age. In the second half of his presidency, he had some on-camera slips. Biden needed to prove that he could serve another term but failed at the June debate to present himself as a man whose age was not an obstacle.
The biggest challenge Harris is facing is strengthening her image. She is intent on proving herself capable of being a competent leader. She also needs to solidify her supporter base among the electorate's more conservative and progressive sides. Proving capable of handling difficult situations such as prisoner swaps or the aftermath of Hurricane Helene is what can attract a wider voter towards her campaign.
Works Cited
Hutzler, Alexandra. “Biden, Harris greeted by chants of 'Thank you, Joe' at 1st joint event since he exited race.” ABC7, 15 August 2024, https://abc7chicago.com/post/biden-harris-speech-today-vice-president-kamala-harris-president-joe-biden-hold-1st-joint-event-he-dropped/15189592/. Accessed 4 October 2024.
Kamala Harris. “Kamala Harris's campaign.” Kamala Harris for President: Official Campaign Website, https://kamalaharris.com/. Accessed 4 October 2024.
White House. “Joe Biden: The President.” The White House, 2024, https://www.whitehouse.gov/administration/president-biden/. Accessed 4 October 2024.
