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Kamala Harris, the Democrat party candidate of America Election 2024 is already turning in the youth vote bank to herself. Though opponent candidate republican Donald Trump was ahead of Biden in previous polls. After Harris entered the scene, situation gradually inclined towards Kamala Harris.
The survey, published Wednesday from NBC News and SurveyMonkey shows that if the election was to take place now, Harris will command about 50% to 60% percent vote of the youth vote while Trump would have chance to pull in 34% vote so far. Therefore, young people do have power to seal the deal for the candidates in the coming election.
Background
Kamala Harris, is already holding the first position in the political history of America. Her diverse background with a black father and Indian mother earned her the honor of being the first black American in that position. Moreover, she is also first South Asian American vice president of the USA. Above all, she is the first woman to hold this post. Harris was officially chosen for presidential nominee following her victory in voting polls held by the party delegates. Partially, poor performance of Joe Biden with his republican candidate televised on TV nationally was also vital in this.
Why Kamala Harris?
Many tabloids and newspapers stated that Harris is in the “leading position” among the American youth groups. The winning candidate “is going to be the person that meets Gen Z where they are,” Mason Morgan, the executive director of Run Gen Z, a group that recruits young conservatives for local and state office, told Newsweek. “Harris is able to connect with culture young people care about,” Cristina Tzintzún Ramirez, the president of NextGen,
USA has never had an woman president since their independence. And, Harris’s popularity is increasing over time. Therefore, the possibilities of having their first ever woman president is hovering in the mind of Americans.
Actions That Attracted Youth Attention
Events with young people: One smart move Harris managed to put out is using digital media campaign to attract young supporters. Recently, Harris invited many of the online influencers to join her campaign hoping to disseminate her messages around. Opponent mr. Donald Trump is catching up with the trend as well by participating in online streaming with the young content producers.
Youth Friendly Speeches: Kamala Harris consciously include young group while delivering a speech publicly, some of which directly target young groups. Harris said in a prerecorded video posted to a new campaign landing page, “So, as you begin this school year, I’m calling on you to understand and know the stakes of this election, not only for our country but for you,”. Personalizing the content to that level helps her getting closer to her people. Specially as American youth is not traditionally interested in getting involved or casting electoral votes in many states as surveys found out.
Digital Ad Campaign: Kamala Harris also announced the biggest digital ad campaign saying it was “on pace to spend more on digital persuasion media than any political organization ever”. The funded investments is to seek attention from the online users specially young people on Hulu,YouTube, Pandora and other sites. The amount ($200m) is even higher than television ad booking ($170m).
Gun Safety: One of the reasons the young people is worried about the candidate’s position on Gun safety law. Kamala Harris is far ahead of his opponent regarding this issue. She had a long history of backing off gun safety regulations during her earlier time in politics. Harris defended legal challenges to establish California’s gun law when she was state’s attorney general. This has made the states pull in $750m in federal funds to support crisis intervention programs in last years.
Palestine-Israel Issue: Kamala Harris is more coherent than Joe Biden was on the ongoing crisis in Gaza.She said during her DNC acceptance speech that she will ensure “that Israel is secure, the hostages are released, the suffering in Gaza ends, and the Palestinian people can realize their right to dignity, security, freedom, and self-determination”. Ms. Harris has been upfront about her position on Israel-Gaza issue criticizing Israel blatantly.
She along with her colleagues in the administration called for an “immediate cease-fire” to avoid humanitarian crisis in Gaza. However, she is not in favor of imposing arms embargo on Israel. As she is claiming that Israel has right to earn capability to defend themselves.
Kamala Harris is planning her outreach campaign to young people. This is to have an increase in support among Gen Z and younger millennial voters. Besides, her campaign will double its youth organizing staff around the country. They will also work to launch a college campus tour in battleground states.
However, one major concern some election experts raised that young people had appeared no show and hence not casting their votes earlier. This is also a challenge both candidates need to face and resolve to ensure young presence at election. For examples, political campaigns need to include more young people, let them participate and engage.