Will ‘lacklustre’ Kamala Harris be Biden’s running mate in 2024?
President Biden’s decision to seek a second term will shine a spotlight on Kamala Harris, who is widely viewed as a weak link.
President Biden’s decision to seek a second term in the White House will shine a spotlight on Kamala Harris, who will be one of most visible figures during the campaign despite what many see as lacklustre performance as vice president.
Harris, 58, a former senator from California, featured prominently in the video that launched Biden’s re-election bid on Tuesday.
It confirmed what her staff have been saying privately for months: that she is preparing for a second term as vice president.
Recent polls into her performance show that voters are not satisfied, however.
A survey found just 36 per cent of Americans approve of the job she is doing, while 53 per cent disapprove.
Among Democrats just over three quarters say she is doing a good job, compared with 16 per cent who say she should be performing better.
After standing against Biden for the Democratic nomination in 2020, when they clashed bitterly over his record on race, Harris was brought on to the ticket to draw support from ethnic minority voters and women, two constituencies Biden struggles to connect with.
Her value to the campaign is clear: at the age of 80 there are legitimate questions about whether Biden will have the stamina for a full second term.
She has made little secret that she wants the top job, but she could be thrust into the White House before 2029.
Republican opponents see her as a weak link in the administration. Asked by Biden to tackle some knotty problems, she has been unable to solve many of them.
Yet she has performed much better on issues that are closer to her heart.
On Tuesday, she passionately attacked the Supreme Court and Republicans who have restricted access to abortion.
Such speeches play well to her base, but it is questionable whether they will energise the swing voters the Biden team is hoping to win over.
The Times
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