Should Kamala Harris Be the Democratic Nominee for President? A Clear-Eyed Look Beyond Identity Politics

I am a registered Democrat. However, I want to start with a simple request: please do not turn this into a discussion about race or gender.

In the election before last, I voted for Jill Stein, a woman. In the last election, I voted for Biden. Years ago, although I was registered as a Republican and gave him some criticism early on, I voted for Obama, a Black man. Later, after returning to my original party, I supported Obama strongly. So please don’t assume my opinions are shaped primarily by those topics.

Also, everything I say here about Kamala Harris applies just as well to Joe Biden. Keep that in mind before expecting full agreement.

During Kamala Harris’s four years as vice president, I have not seen a speech or statement from her that showed a significant accomplishment or inspired me. I haven’t even seen her speak in a way that moved me.

I feel the same way about Joe Biden. I have seen him speak many times, but nothing from him has inspired or motivated me either. Both of them have mostly been present without making a strong impact.

With Joe stepping down, the person we originally elected as president is no longer in office. From my perspective, vice presidents—including Joe Biden when he was VP—mostly ride along on the ticket chosen by the main candidate and aren’t truly elected on their own.

In my lifetime, I haven’t seen a vice president who stood out as inspiring or motivating. Fortunately, our presidents have served their terms, so we haven’t had to move into one of their successors unexpectedly. For example, in New York, Cuomo was ousted, and that’s how we now have Governor Hochul. Honestly, I hadn’t heard of her before all this. Also, I never quite understood the appeal of De Blasio as mayor, especially with his presidential ambitions.

I think Democrats should consider other candidates who might have been sidelined while a Democrat was already president. Since that’s no longer the case, Kamala Harris should not automatically be the presumptive nominee just because she was Biden’s choice for vice president. With Biden stepping down, the field should open up for others to run. She shouldn’t just default into the slot.

Joe Biden remains president until the end of his term—he hasn’t resigned or anything. So Kamala Harris doesn’t automatically become the next presidential candidate. Even if he did leave office early, I think she should run for the position rather than assume it by default. Still, from a historical perspective, if she became president, she would be the first woman to hold that office in the U.S., which would be notable.

Honestly, I’m glad it’s her and not Hillary Clinton. I never liked Hillary or felt she was genuine.

I’m aware of the right-wing attacks on Kamala Harris, and frankly, I don’t pay much attention to them—they don’t disqualify her as a candidate. Recently, Trump picked JD Vance as his running mate. That’s another person I hadn’t heard of and don’t really know. It would be concerning if Trump won and this relatively unknown figure became president.

I’m not criticizing Kamala Harris personally. I just don’t see anything from her that clearly justifies her selection by the Democrats. I’m also tired of the political establishment that tends to dominate our country. Kennedy is running as a third-party candidate, and based on what I’ve seen on Instagram, his speeches have caught my attention and inspired me more than Kamala or Joe ever have. I don’t know much about him yet, so I’m not saying I’ll vote for him, but he has my interest.

I’m curious about what comes next. We’ll have to wait and see. It seems Biden’s decision to step down is a response to recent national pressures, including events related to Trump. The Democrats are feeling the heat and trying to respond. These days, I try to avoid politics because it frustrates me. Suddenly, everyone is very focused on Kamala Harris when she was barely on the radar before. Politics can be exhausting.