US Presidential Election 2024: Is Ms. Harris a 'brighter color' than Mr. Trump?

Unprecedented things

CNN commented that if former President Donald Trump wins on November 5, he will be the one elected president for two non-consecutive terms, after losing the second election in 2020. Mr. Trump will have the most amazing political career comeback ever, trying to maintain power after the 2020 election, despite being convicted of a crime and escaping two assassination attempts this year.

Meanwhile, if elected, Vice President Kamala Harris could break a nearly 250-year streak of male commanders-in-chief and become the first female president of the United States. This would be an incredible feat after she united and kept the spirit of her party, especially after incumbent President Joe Biden withdrew from the race in July.

On the final day of the campaign, the importance of the election increased even more, when no one could predict who would be the final winner.

Polls nationally and in key swing states have yet to show a clear front-runner, reflecting a deeply polarized America as the race began. But according to CNN, there is still a chance that one candidate could build a late advantage in battleground states including Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Georgia, North Carolina, Nevada and Arizona, and win more than expected.

Democrats have been buoyed by high early turnout among women, where abortion rights are likely to be a key issue. Vice President Harris has also worked to heal rifts in the traditional Democratic coalition, trying to appeal to men of color and Latino voters in particular.

Former President Trump is counting on voters frustrated by rising food and housing prices and an inflationary economy. He has made undocumented migrants a danger to highlight the crisis at the southern border.

The Biden administration has struggled for months to recognize the severity of each problem and come up with remedies, while the Trump campaign believes he will undermine traditionally minority Democratic constituencies and once again turn out people who would normally not vote for Republicans.

But there are also worrying signs from Mr Trump. It is worth recalling that after the 2020 election, there was a riot on Capitol Hill in an attempt to prevent the certification of Mr Joe Biden's victory.

Ms. Harris has said she is ready to respond if the former president makes a premature declaration of victory. And Mr. Trump’s moves suggest that, without a clear victory for either side, election uncertainty could last for days.

The end of Trumpism — or the beginning of a new era of extremism?

CNN said that this is not a normal election, largely due to the presence and influence of Mr. Trump on the American political scene and public, even though he has left the White House. If he fulfills his promises, the Republican candidate - who has been impeached twice - will put America's governing, judicial and constitutional institutions to the greatest test.

According to CNN, Mr. Trump has projected the most authoritarian image of any presidential candidate in modern history. He is proposing the largest mass deportation of migrants ever — an operation that, by definition, would involve law enforcement and possibly even the military in a domestic crackdown that would challenge civil liberties. He has openly considered using the US armed forces against his political opponents, whom he calls “the enemy within.”

The former president also proposed an economic transformation, having seen people’s livelihoods hollowed out by decades of globalization. But Mr. Trump’s policy on tariffs risks a backlash that could send the economy into reverse. Mr. Trump also plans to dismiss Washington officials and dismantle agencies like the Justice Department that constrained him during his first term and that he wants to weaponize to wipe out criminal prosecutions.

In 2016, Mr. Trump - a businessman, entered American politics, and was considered an "outsider". More than 9 years later, entering the 2024 race, Mr. Trump could be stronger politically than ever.

However, Vice President Harris enters Election Day with a chance to end the "Trump era" and deliver a second consecutive electoral defeat to the Republican Party.

Ms. Harris is offering voters a chance to avoid the chaos and danger of the rule of law that Mr. Trump’s campaign has characterized. The vice president also proposes reforms to improve the lives of American workers — but her reforms are not as revolutionary as Mr. Trump’s. Ms. Harris promises to take steps to make housing more affordable, to crack down on what she calls price gouging by giant supermarkets, and to ensure better, more affordable health care.

Ms. Harris took a risk, offering continuity to her predecessor at a time of deep dissatisfaction with the country’s economic and political realities. She also struggled to distance herself from an 81-year-old president who is unpopular with voters, even as he presides over the industrialized world’s strongest economic recovery since the Covid-19 pandemic.