“America’s light will return,” assures Kamala Harris after losing by a landslide in the presidential election to Donald Trump. The Democrat, defeated by the Republican, or rather, by the candidate of himself. Or as writes George F. Will in The Washington Post: “Republican self-degradation continues. Democratic self-sabotage helped.”
“While I accept defeat, I am not giving up the fight that drove this campaign,” Harris assured hours after her defeat was confirmed. But, is she the one chosen to continue that fight? Will the Democratic party again trust the prosecutor who has served as vice president of Joe Biden to recover the White House?
Unclear. “We had a candidate with a relatively low profile. -no one knew much about Kamala Harris– who ran against one of the most notorious people in the history of mankind,” said Democratic Congressman Don Beyer, who on Tuesday night easily won re-election.
Ro Khanna, D-California, is among the few with presidential ambitions who spoke out already. “I think there needs to be a house cleaninga new generation of leaders has to emerge,” he said.
Who is leading the party?
What is certain is that the Democrats enter into A second Trump presidency without a clear leader., without a clear plan and without agreement on what made them so wrong about the 2024 election. “There has to be new thinking, new ideas and a new direction. And, you know, the establishment produced a mess,” Khanna asserts.
![Former President Barack Obama holds hands with Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris after introducing her to speak during a campaign rally for Harris on Thursday, Oct. 24, 2024, in Clarkston, Ga. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) [[[AP/LAPRESSE]]]](https://imagenes.20minutos.es/uploads/imagenes/2024/10/25/la-candidata-democrati-51708053.jpeg)
But, who accepts the challenge knowing that it plays to cross an arid desert of four years, more arid than in 2016 because Trump will have a greater concentration of power at his disposal this time than on that occasion? Of course, the opponent will not be Trump (he will not be able to run again).
Among the elected Democrats most often mentioned as presidential candidates for 2028 are the governors of California, Illinois, Michigan and Pennsylvania. But now, in the midst of defeat, none of them want to talk. Some even canceled scheduled interviews.
Have they abandoned the working class?
But, like Khanna, some other members of the Democratic party, perhaps the most progressive, have spoken out. The Senator Bernie Sandersthe “leftist” who nearly won the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020, wrote a statement that censures his party’s leadership.
“It shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that a Democratic Party that has abandoned the working class would find that the working class has abandoned it,” Sanders said. “First it was the white working class and now it’s Latino and Black workers as well. While Democratic leaders defend the status quothe American people are angry and want change. And they are right,” says the veteran Vermont state senator.
Somewhat so believes Democratic Rep. Shri Thanedar, whose district contains much of Detroit. “The Democrats focused on Trump’s character. His legal problems, being a crook. But for the most part, people who are suffering financially, who feel they are worse off financially, didn’t pay much attention to his character,” he says.
Gavin Newsom, the governor of California
One of the leading national figures in the Democratic Party is California Governor Gavin Newsom, and therefore possibly one of the leading candidates for the presidency in 2028. The San Francisco Cronicle says Newson “is now positioning himself as a leader of the Democratic resistance.”
Sidelined as the party bet on Harris, Trump’s victory resituates him. “Now, Newsom has a political opportunity.” said Rob Stutzman, a Republican strategist who worked for former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. “Not only does he get a lifeline for his career, which was facing a dead end, but he will be able to position himself as the leader of the resistance,” the latter believes.
Josh Shapiro, Pennsylvania Gov.
Shapiro’s political star is on the rise. He completes his second year as governor of Pennsylvania. after easily prevailing in 2022 over Doug Mastriano, a far-right candidate backed by Trump. He previously served as Pennsylvania attorney general and as a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
Shapiro has bipartisan appeal and in his home state even earns the support of some Republicans. But he is Jewish. According to Ohio Congressman Greg Landsman, it is important to ask whether the United States is ready for a Jewish vice president, or at least a Jewish running mate. In any case, he has potential appeal in the “blue wall” states, which is no longer a blue wall.
Gretchen Whitmer, the governor of Michigan.
Kamala Harris and Gretchen Whitmer could form a winning ticket for the Democrats. That Julian Zelizer argues in CNN. “Not only would he have the best chance of leading the party out of this moment of crisis, but also the potential to excite voters and produce a historic result,” writes this professor of political history at Princeton University.
Considered a rising star within the Democratic Partythe Michigan governor has already served two terms in another key state. Whitmer was already in the running to lead the ticket if Harris was not chosen to run against Trump.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, New York’s Promising New Yorker
Some speak clearly about the causes of defeat and pick up Sanders’ speech. “The problem is our ability to defend with clarity and frankness. a program that clearly defends the working class.“said Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Democratic representative for New York. When people talk about the future of the party, they talk about her (although, they say, she is too far to the left to be head of the ticket).
“Our main project is To unite the working class of this country against a fascist agenda.” he asserted Wednesday. “We’ve had a huge setback in this election because the fascists won a lot of working-class support, something that has happened before in history,” he said.
Ruben Gallego, the surprise of Arizona
Democrat Ruben Gallego is one of the few joys the blue party got on Tuesday. It has snatched the Senate seat for Arizona from Trumpist Kari Lake.
Colombian mother and Mexican father, Gallego is a former Navy serviceman who was an infantryman in Iraq. He previously studied International Relations at Harvard University. He has been a member of the House of Representatives since 2015. Some are already talking about him for 2028.
Michelle Obama?
In legal terms, the former first lady could run for president. Bookmakers are cheering that possibility. The odds of Harris running again in 2028 are 40/1 (2.4%), “but eyes are on a name familiar to Democrats.” assures Newsweek a spokesman for Betfair. Michelle Obama is 4/1 to be president. of the United States in four years.
Bookmaker William Hill has looked at the favorites to win the 2028 presidential election. The one who from January will be the country’s new vice president, JD Vance would be a 3/1 (25%) frontrunner. He is followed by Obama at 5/1 (16.7%), Newsom at 11/2 (15.4%) and Republican DeSantis at 8/1 (11.1%).
Why did the Democrats lose?
Some blame the Democratic debacle on President Biden for backtracking on his pledge not to run for re-election, which prevented the party from electing a replacement in a traditional primary. Tuesday’s results show that the Democratic party’s current problems go far beyond its political machine.
There are Democratic lawmakers and aides who have already criticized Harris, her choice of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her vice presidential nominee and how she ran her campaign, without distancing herself sufficiently from President Biden.
“It was necessary for the Democratic nominee to separate himself from an unpopular incumbent, as much as we love Joe Biden“, Massachusetts Rep. Seth Moulton told Politico. This publication carries an article by its editor Jamie Dettmer entitled: “Democrats keep forgetting about the working class.“.