Staff Reports
Kamala Harris is discovering the hard way that a few carefully staged interviews in friendly lanes won’t shield her from the harsh reality of her dismal approval ratings. The Harris-Walz campaign, after weeks of hunkering down and desperately trying to hide from the voters, has jumped into the spotlight, only to find it glaringly hot. Even mainstream media stalwart CNN can’t gloss over the grim statistics regarding her support, labeling it the worst Democratic performance seen in decades.
The issue isn’t just the inevitable downfall of Kamala as a candidate who ducked the primary scrimmage; it’s a sign of a broader disconnect between the Democratic Party and its traditional ally: the working-class voter. Once a cornerstone for the party, these voters are now all but ghosting Harris and company. The campaign’s failure to secure the endorsement of the Teamsters Union underscored this betrayal, with rank-and-file members favoring Donald Trump by a staggering two-to-one ratio. Even Harry Enten from CNN acknowledged the disaster brewing for Democrats, broadcasting her lack of appeal to working-class voters.
Trump has more working class support than any GOP presidential candidate in a generation. He's on track for the best performance among union voters in 40 years. He's up 31 points among trade school grads.
He's doing 17 pts better among nonwhite non-college voters than in 2020. pic.twitter.com/0ObrWWNzYf
— (((Harry Enten))) (@ForecasterEnten) September 30, 2024
Data trends can be illuminating, but in Kamala’s case, they scream alarmingly loud. The last time a Democratic candidate could boast of solid union support was during Bill Clinton’s heyday in 1992, when he won union households by a whopping 30-point lead. Fast forward to 2016, and Hillary Clinton managed much less—an unimpressive 12 points. Now, Harris lingers with a flimsy nine-point lead. The steep decline in support is shocking, especially when compared to Joe Biden’s 19-point margin just four years ago. For Democrats, this isn’t just a minor bump; it’s a full-on demolition derby.
Enten made it clear that the union vote, once a fortress for Democrats, has started to crumble. He analyzed the trade school landscape—the new turf that many of these voters are gravitating towards—and it’s a stark reflection of the shift away from traditional Democratic ideals. Mike Rowe’s advocacy for vocational education has gained traction as this demographic increasingly sees Trump as their champion. Over the years, support for working-class candidates has transitioned from a core Democratic commitment to a solid bulwark for the Republican front runner. In fact, Trump’s stronghold among those who didn’t finish college is growing faster than a weed in summertime.
Going further, the trends show a dramatic dip in Harris’s appeal among minority voters as well. Joe Biden’s gallant 45-point lead among them has withered to a mere 28-point advantage for Harris. The social dynamic has changed immensely, and the Democrats are left wondering how they lost ground to Trump. It’s no secret that the more the party tries to woo the affluent elite at the expense of the working class, the more they alienate the very voters they claim to represent.
The implications of these numbers are staggering; they’re not just statistics on a page, but clear evidence of a party out of touch with the people. In a climate where Republicans—especially Trump—are consolidating support among voters who traditionally leaned Democratic, one can only wonder if the left is speeding down a path toward electoral irrelevance. The blue team is losing its battle for the hearts of hardworking Americans, and they may be too proud to see the writing on the wall.
