The current vice-president, however, impressed observers throughout her short campaign. Whether during the debate which she won hands down or in a meeting, the Democrat showed that she had the shoulders to take on the role of president.
The former tenant of the White House was much less surprising. But this should not be seen as a weakness. Indeed, his style appeals to his activists and he knows it. Moreover, observers have identified several advantages which could work in favor of the billionaire. Explanations.
American presidential election: Kamala Harris or Donald Trump? Here’s what the first results say
1. Loyal voters
As we have already seen in 2020, Donald Trump remains incredibly popular with many Americans. “His voters are absolutely loyal to him, regardless of his escapades,” explained Serge Jaumain, professor of contemporary history at ULB, to La Libre. “He has an incredible capacity for mobilization. The proof is that he had more votes in 2020 than in 2016. His image of a bad guy, very uptight, who has a very negative perception of the United States pleases. It speaks to a part of America, which is dissatisfied, embittered and which finds that the Democrats take up too much space.”
Unlike Kamala Harris, the former president no longer had anything to gain in this campaign since his electorate was fixed and acquired. “If he accepted, for example, the debate against Harris, it was not so much to attract additional voters, but it was above all hoping that Harris would collapse and give a bad image,” Serge continued. Jaumain. But, as his rival has more than proven himself, the Republican candidate preferred not to repeat the experience. After all, since he had nothing to gain, why give Kamala Harris the opportunity to rise in popularity at his expense?
2. The significant support of the stars
Unlike the previous election, Donald Trump was able to surround himself with strong supporters, who can make the difference. “Elon Musk is an exceptional reinforcement within the framework of his campaign with the sounding board offered by . “You also have a Kennedy, in the person of Robert Kennedy Junior, who joins the Republican camp. The Kennedys, historically, are a bit of the aristocracy of the Democratic party. And here, Robert Kennedy Junior also defends a very in particular, that of health. With his “Make America Healthy Again”, he intends to fight against pharmaceuticals, the food industry etc. Finally, you have Tulsi Gabbard, who is a former Democratic candidate in the 2020 primaries who had success. elsewhere challenged Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. This veteran joined the Trump camp and has this credibility linked to her career in the American army.
Note, however, that the former tenant of the White House saw superstar Taylor Swift turn her back on him. The billionaire who would have liked to benefit from the support of the idol of young people had to resign himself to seeing her call to vote in favor of her rival. “It was an essential moment in this electoral campaign,” Serge Jaumain explained to us. “Taylor Swift has an impressive number of followers on Instagram and she has real influence. She has already demonstrated it. When she asked to be registered in 2023, we observed a significant increase in the number of voters. This is all the more a setback for Donald Trump since he had suggested, notably through a montage, that she was favorable to him. Taylor Swift, who has distinguished herself in the country world, is widely followed by the. southern United States. He is a figure who, given his background, could a priori support Donald Trump. A large part of his fans are also Donald Trump voters.
3. The theme of migration
Several themes were discussed at length throughout the campaign. But one of them in particular seems to have monopolized attention for some time: the migration question. To the great joy of Donald Trump, who has made it his trademark. “This could tip the election,” said Nicolas Baygert. “It is a palpable crisis among Americans, a great concern. We have even seen mayors of large cities, although Democrats, publicly speak of a sort of overwhelm. The Biden-Harris record at this level is very criticized.”
And the former tenant of the White House largely rode this wave which was rather favorable to him throughout the campaign. Even if it means adopting an increasingly virulent and stigmatizing discourse. He thus estimated that the migrants were “poisoning the blood of the country” and wanted to “rape, pillage, steal, pillage and kill the people of the United States of America”. His comments during the debate with Kamala Harris on migrants “who ate cats and dogs” also caused a lot of ink to flow. But this fake news which was circulating on X and taken up by the former President of the United States did not fail to delight part of his electorate.
