Following President Biden’s announcement of his withdrawal from the 2024 presidential race on Sunday (July 21), he declared his support for Vice President Kamala Harris to become the Democratic Party’s presidential candidate. Several Democratic governors are also potential contenders for the presidency.
After the first presidential debate between Biden and Trump on June 27, calls within the Democratic Party for the 81-year-old Biden to step down began to surface. With Biden stepping out of the race, the question arises: who will be the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee?
During the Republican National Convention from July 15 to 18, former President Trump, who had faced an assassination attempt for thirteen days, garnered increased support and secured the Republican presidential nominee for the third consecutive time.
An international polling firm Ipsos conducted a survey on July 16 among 992 registered voters in the U.S., revealing that if Harris were the candidate, she would receive 44% support, equal to Trump, and surpassing Biden’s 41% support.
Contrary to these findings, a recent survey by YouGov from July 13-16 involving 1,582 adult U.S. citizens indicated that if Harris were the Democratic presidential nominee in 2024, 39% of respondents would vote for her, trailing behind Biden’s 41% support, while approximately 43% would vote for Trump.
When asked about Harris’s likelihood of defeating Trump compared to Biden, 15% believed she had better chances, 26% thought their probabilities were similar, 39% felt her chances were lower, and 20% were uncertain.
On the day Biden announced his withdrawal, Jaime Harrison, the chairman of the Democratic National Committee (DNC), stated that the party would select the 2024 presidential nominee through a “transparent and orderly process” without explicitly endorsing any candidate.
Harris, hailing from California, currently stands at the forefront of potential candidates. She is the incumbent Vice President and the first woman of color to hold this position in the United States. Born in Oakland, California, Harris graduated from Howard University and the University of California, Hastings College of the Law. Aged 59, her mother is an Indian biologist, and her father has Jamaican heritage.
From January 2004 to January 2011, Harris served as San Francisco’s district attorney; from January 2011 to January 2017, she was elected as California’s attorney general; and from January 2017 to January 2021, she served as a U.S. senator. In January 2021, Harris assumed the role of Vice President of the United States.
Additionally, several Democratic governors such as Gavin Newsom (California), Gretchen Whitmer (Michigan), Jay Robert “J.B.” Pritzker (Illinois), Andy Beshear (Kentucky), Wes Moore (Maryland), Amy Klobuchar (Minnesota), Josh Shapiro (Pennsylvania), Jared Polis (Colorado), and Roy Cooper (North Carolina) are also potential contenders for the presidency.