The gender gap has always existed in American elections. Since the 1980s, women have tended to vote more for Democrats, and men more for Republicans. But never before have the differences been so marked. In the last 25 years, that gap has doubled, especially among the youngest voters.
“Among young women under 24, finding one who wants to vote for Trump is like finding a green dog,” says political strategist and voting trend analyst Frank Luntz. “Young women are dying to vote for Kamala Harris, in whom they see who they would like to be in 30 years.”
“The gender gap in 2024 is especially large,” says Katherine Tate, a professor of political science at Brown University. “Trump has alienated women voters with his hostile language and aggressiveness. “The female vote is going to be decisive in this election.”
The trend is obvious at any rally for either candidate. The former president’s audience tends to be dominated by men. The vice president’s, though more diverse, is filled with female faces. And both candidates have emphasized cultivating these respective voting pads.
“On voting day, when many couples go to the polling station, they will not talk to each other on the way. That night, there will be many couples in which one ends up sleeping on the sofa, and not precisely because they are following the counting,” says Luntz ironically.
Trump’s hypermasculinity Trump appeals to hypermasculinity, a trait that he has especially accentuated in recent weeks and that has allowed him to capture votes among groups that until now were more inclined to support Democrats, such as Latino men, African Americans and young people.
At his campaign events, a wrestling star rips off his shirt; he constantly calls for “fighting”; he has made allusions to the size of a golfer’s sexual organ. His few allusions to women are to offer himself as their “protector.” His vice-presidential candidate, J. D. Vance, is a particularly reviled figure among progressive women because of disparaging comments about “childless cat ladies,” or his suggestion that grandparents be used to care for small children.
Harris, meanwhile, has not wanted to emphasize the historical nature of her candidacy as the first woman of mixed Black and South Asian American heritage to run for the White House: it is a lesson learned from Hillary Clinton’s failed presidential bid, when in 2016 she promised in her campaign to “break the highest, hardest glass ceiling.” The vice president has made abortion rights her banner and tries to present herself as the candidate of dialogue, inclusion, and common sense. At some of her rallies she has appeared alongside former Republican congresswoman Liz Cheney, daughter of former vice president Dick Cheney, to send a message to conservative and moderate women, who may be interested in Trump’s political proposals but who are repelled by the candidate’s aggressive personality .
Last week, her campaign organized a large event in Houston, Texas, to highlight the draconian law that has banned abortion in that state for three years, and its negative consequences for women’s health. At the event, Harris was accompanied by stars such as Jessica Alba and Beyoncé, who appealed “as a mother” for people to vote for the Democratic candidate.
Despite all this, a section of the female electorate does lean toward Trump. “It is very important to know that the values of the Republican Party are the values of Latinos,” says Teresa, of Venezuelan origin, but who has lived in the city of Reading, Pennsylvania, for more than two decades.
The support of women is good news for Harris. They tend to go to the polls more regularly than men and represent 53% of the electorate. According to an analysis by Politico this week, in the early voting in the swing states, there is a gender gap of 10 percentage points in favor of women, who account for 55% of the ballots cast compared to 45% for men.
Despite everything, women’s votes will not be enough to give Harris victory. Nor will men’s votes alone be enough to propel Trump to the White House.
Thus, two of the most popular Democrats among the party’s rank and file, Barack and Michelle Obama, have launched an appeal to men to vote for Harris. “If we don’t get this election right, your wife, your daughter, your mother, we as women will become collateral damage to your rage,” said the former first lady, who continued: “So are you as men prepared to look into the eyes of the women and children you love and tell them you supported this assault on our safety?”
Harris campaign launches campaign in search of the ‘Hombre Latino’
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