Vice President Harris and her allies are making a last-ditch effort to strip Republican support from former President Trump in the final stages of the election.
Harris rallied with a number of prominent Republicans in the battleground state of Pennsylvania on Thursday, telling her party's voters: “There is a place for you in this campaign.” During the same trip, Harris participated in her first sit-down interview with Fox News, a cable network with a large right-leaning audience. And Republican voters opposed to Trump and the FF PAC launched eight-figure ad buys against the former president in key battleground states.
The effort comes as the Trump and Harris campaigns seek to reach out to voters outside their traditional constituencies to close the gap and make up for ground lost with other groups.
“I know they won't agree.'' [with Harris] It’s about something,” said Olivia Troy, a Harris surrogate and former national security adviser to former Vice President Mike Pence, referring to Harris’ Republican supporters. “They're looking at two very different types of people who could potentially lead our country, and the contrast between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump could not be more stark.”
Many of Harris' Republican supporters cited Trump's denial of the 2020 election results, Trump's role in the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, and Roe v. Wade as reasons for bipartisanship this November. cites a reversal of
Over the past month, Harris has stepped up efforts to appeal to persuasive Republican voters. Earlier this month, the vice president campaigned with former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.), something that would have seemed unbelievable four years ago. The campaign also ran a number of ads featuring Republicans in Arizona, including an ad released last week featuring Republican Mayor John Giles of Mesa. The spot will air on local broadcast and cable networks, including Fox News Channel.
In the latest sign of encouragement for Ms. Harris, former Republican Rep. Charlie Dent (D-Pa.), who supported Mr. Biden in 2020, said Friday in Allentown that he voted for the vice president.
“Our outreach efforts have made a huge difference to our constituents,” Troy said. “This is not just one thing. This advocacy is ongoing and continues to gain momentum and grow.”
Harris made her first appearance on Fox News earlier this week, speaking with the station's chief political anchor, Bret Baier. The interview exposed Harris to a large audience, including many viewers who lean to the political right.
“It's not going to move the needle a lot, but if it moves even 1%, it would be decisive,” said Mike Madrid, a Republican strategist and co-founder of the Lincoln Project. “That's what they're doing. They're playing a margin game right now,” he added, referring to the Harris campaign.
Harris is trying to appeal to Republican voters, frustrated by calls for President Trump to bring her former opponent, Nikki Haley, into the campaign to keep persuasive Republicans in the party. It was held in the midst of Although Ms. Haley lost to Mr. Trump in the Republican presidential primary earlier this year, she achieved a number of strong results during the campaign.
The Bulwark newspaper reported Thursday that Trump's team is in talks with Haley to accompany her on the campaign trail toward the end of the month, but details are reportedly still being worked out.
Given the partisan divisions among the electorate and Trump's iron grip on the Republican base, Harris is unlikely to dislodge the support of large numbers of Republican voters. last month'sNew York Times/Siena College PollIt showed that Mr. Trump had 89% approval among Republicans, while Ms. Harris had 96% approval among Democrats.
But the same poll showed potential signs of hope for Harris among Republicans. According to the survey, 9% of Republicans said they would vote for Vice President Harris.increased from 5 percentIn September.
Harris' supporters argue that roughly equal support from Republican voters would increase her chances of winning outright.
“Six or seven percent is basically what we stripped away.” [Trump] In 2020,” Madrid said. “It's very likely that 10% of Republicans will leave the party, and this will have a huge impact.”
“If Trump loses, it will be because he loses a record number of Republicans,” he said.
But Harris is beset by rifts within her own coalition, particularly among Black and Latino voters.
aNew York Times/Siena College PollAccording to the percentage of likely black voters released last week, Harris' approval rating among black voters was 78%, compared with 15% for Trump. By contrast, in 2020, former President Biden won 90% of Black voters and Trump won 9%.New York Times/Siena College PollAccording to the percentage of likely Hispanic voters, Harris led with 56% of the voting bloc, followed by Trump with 37%.According to 2020 exit pollsBiden won 65% of Latino voters, while Trump won 32%.
This is a particularly worrying number for Democrats among black and Hispanic men. Opinion polls found that Trump was supported by 20% of likely black male voters, compared to 70% for Harris. Among likely Hispanic male voters, Harris received support from 48% and Trump from 45%.
“The race will be determined by whether Democrats can make up for the loss of black and Hispanic men by winning more Republicans,” Madrid said. “So Donald Trump has openly said we're going after black and Hispanic men, and Kamala Harris has openly said we're going after Republican voters. There is.”
Troy called the Republicans voting for Harris an “influence vote,” but pushed back on the idea that there are worrying cracks in Harris' coalition.
“Her cooperation and support continues to grow with each interview,” she said.
Troy, who is Latino, specifically added that he is not convinced that Harris is at war with the Latino and Hispanic communities.
But many Republicans are skeptical that Harris will be able to sway enough Republican voters to have a meaningful impact in November, and that Trump will close the lead in many key battleground states. points out.
“This part of the campaign is all about addition, not subtraction,” said one Republican strategist. “You guys are trying to beat around the bushes and get every vote you can.”
“Both sides are doing it and it's the smart thing to do. It's common sense political maneuvering,” the strategist added. “I don't think they'll be very successful in attracting Republicans to the Harris-Waltz ticket.”
The Hill/Decision Desk average shows Harris leading Trump by less than 1 percentage point in Michigan, while Trump leads by 1.5 percentage points in Arizona. Harris leads by 0.2 points in Nevada, while Trump leads by 0.5 points in Wisconsin. And in Pennsylvania, the battleground state with the most electoral votes, Harris leads Trump by just 0.3 percentage points.
“In recent weeks, he has regained the edge in terms of getting his message across,” the strategist said. “There are limited paid media ads that can be run in Pennsylvania, but whether it's through local media, national media, social media, or anything else, we can influence how local voters view the race and view the candidates. You can make an impact.”
“I think the real reason is that Trump is starting to edge her out in that regard, and that's starting to have a big impact on the polls,” the strategist said.
