Vice President Kamala Harris appears to have improved Democrats’ chances among just one voting bloc compared to four years ago: college-educated white voters.
There has been widespread criticism of what led to President-elect Donald Trump’s decisive victory in the presidential election, which many believed before Tuesday could be one of the closest America has ever known. One factor raised by several critics is that Democrats have lost touch with the American working class, which could be reflected in Tuesday’s exit polls.
Trump beat Harris in nearly every key battleground state and improved among several key demographic groups, namely Latino voters. According to CNN’s 2020 and 2024 exit polls, Trump is up 14 points among Latinos, with Harris winning the bloc by just 6 points this week. In 2020, President Joe Biden won the Latino vote by 33 points.
One demographic where Harris improved over Biden’s exit polls was white voters with college degrees. According to CNN poll results for the 2024 election, the Democratic candidate won the bloc 52 percent to 45 percent on Tuesday. In 2020, Biden won the same group 51% to 48%.
Harris, however, lost ground among voters of color with college degrees. While Biden won this demographic by 43 points in 2020 (70% to 27%), Harris won the same voters by 10 points less, leading Trump 65% to 32%, according to the exit poll. CNN. Democrats also lost ground among voters of color without a degree. In 2020, Biden won the bloc 72 percent to 26 percent. On Tuesday, Harris won the same voters 64 percent to 34 percent.
In terms of income levels, Trump also appears to have won over working families. In 2020, Biden won over voters earning less than $50,000 a year by 11 points. On Tuesday, that group swung toward Trump by 3 points (50 percent to 47 percent), according to a CNN exit poll.
Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, an independent re-elected this week, issued a scathing rebuke of the Democratic Party on Wednesday, accusing it of ignoring working-class Americans.
“It would not be surprising if a Democratic Party that has abandoned the working class found that the working class has abandoned them,” Sanders said in a statement.
“While Democratic leaders defend the status quo, the American people are angry and want change,” he added. “And they’re right.”
News week contacted Harris’ campaign for comment.
The vice president’s team has also faced backlash within its own party over the issue of elitism. Philadelphia Democratic Chairman Bob Brady told WCAU on Wednesday that he was frustrated by the lack of communication between the Harris campaign and the local party.
“Talk to us a little. Give us a little more resources. Show us a little respect. That didn’t happen,” Brady said. “They were just elitist and went out there and did their own thing and didn’t include the Democratic City Committee or (ward leaders) or committee members. They just didn’t do it. “
A spokesperson for Harris’ team responded to Brady’s criticism by telling WCAU: “Team Pennsylvania for Harris knocked on more than two million doors over the weekend leading up to Election Day , which is two million more doors than Bob Brady’s organization can claim to have. hit throughout his tenure at the head of the party.
“If there’s one immediate takeaway from Philadelphia’s participation this cycle, it’s that President Brady’s decades-long practice of bilking campaigns for money to compensate his own lack of fundraising ability or leadership, is a worthless endeavor that no future campaign should ever be forced to entertain again,” Harris spokesperson Brendan McPhillips added in the statement. .
