‘Shine a different kind of light.’ Democrats see Harris VP pick as energy for NC races
The addition of Sen. Kamala Harris to the Democratic presidential ticket — the first woman of color to be a major party nominee for one of the country’s two highest political offices — has left North Carolina Democrats feeling giddy and optimistic that her candidacy could boost several races across the state.
Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden picked California’s Harris, the daughter of immigrants from India and Jamaica, on Tuesday. The pair made their first joint appearance Wednesday.
“I am unable to wipe the smile off my face today. That is how pleased I am today about the choice. It’s inspiring just on so many, many different levels,” said Patricia Timmons-Goodson, the first African-American woman to serve on the North Carolina Supreme Court and the Democratic nominee in North Carolina’s 8th Congressional District.
Said state representative Yvonne Lewis Holley, the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor: “I can’t stop grinning.”
Harris is the the first African-American woman and the first person of South Asian descent to be a major party nominee for president or vice president — an historic pick that puts her on the ballot 100 years after women won the right to vote in the United States.
“Her story is an American story,” Biden said Wednesday.
To many Democratic Black women, her selection also serves as an inspiration and a recognition of the work they have done in helping their party. Black women have been the most loyal voters in the Democratic coalition.
“For so long, Black women have been carrying the water, working extremely hard and not earning our fair share. It inspires me that if Kamala can do it, someone that looks like me can do it, too,” state Sen. Erica Smith said.
Smith lost her bid for the Democratic nomination in North Carolina’s U.S. Senate race. She complained about the Democratic establishment’s backing of Cal Cunningham over her in the primary and said the party needs to do more to back candidates from diverse backgrounds.
“It sends a loud message about the final appreciation of the most loyal voting bloc in the Democratic Party. It also addresses concerns, particularly that I have had, about the un-representation of Black women in representative democracy,” Smith said.
Harris is the only Black woman currently in the U.S. Senate and just the second in history.
“We’re the base of the party and now we realize that the party is finally listening,” Lewis Holley said. “It says we’ve been on the right track and that personally what I’m doing is right, the timing is right and the messaging is right and the time is now.”
Will Harris help Democrats win in 2020?
President Donald Trump and Biden are tied in North Carolina, according to polling averages. Trump won the state in 2016. President Barack Obama, the first Black president, and Biden carried the state in 2008, but lost it in 2012.
Along with its pivotal role in the presidential election, North Carolina has competitive U.S. Senate and gubernatorial races where changes in turnout could impact the outcome.
Blacks account for 21.2% of all registered voters in North Carolina, according to the state board of elections.
Black voter participation dropped from a record-high of 66.6% in 2012 to 59.6% in 2016, according to Pew Research Center. In 2018, when Democrats recaptured the U.S. House of Representatives, 55% of eligible Black women voted — six points higher than the national turnout.
In 2016, 98 percent of Black women voted for Hillary Clinton, according to Pew.
Biden’s floundering presidential campaign was saved during the primary by Black voters in South Carolina, helping propel him to the nomination.
There was no person of color on the Democratic ticket in 2016 after successive victories by Obama. Can Harris’ presence drive Black turnout back to its 2016 levels?
Vice presidential selections, despite the considerable media attention paid to them, rarely are the difference between winning and losing the presidential election. But Biden’s age (77) and the historic nature of the selection could make some difference.
“It will energize Black voters and will energize women and also added to that group should be independents,” said Jarvis Hall, a political science professor at North Carolina Central University. “When you look at what has been going on, especially since the George Floyd murder, people are looking for signals that the nation is moving forward and really trying to address its continuing racial problems.
“The selection of Harris, in a symbolic way, sort of indicates that the nation in moving forward.”
Floyd, a Black man, was killed by Minneapolis police officers, who now face murder charges. His death on May 25 set off nationwide protests about the treatment of Blacks by police.
Though Harris was long considered a favorite to be selected, Republicans are still divided over how best to attack her. Some have gone after her record as a district attorney and as California’s Attorney General. Others, including U.S. Rep. Greg Murphy of North Carolina, have portrayed her as too liberal or too extreme.
One group labeled her the most liberal senator, though Sens. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren are often considered the party’s liberal standard-bearers. Warren was another contender for the VP spot.
“I’ve told folks about the extreme consequences of the upcoming election. The possibility of having Kamala Harris one heartbeat away from the Presidency has taken this to a new level of extreme,” Murphy said in a statement Thursday.
While Democrats are hoping to see an uptick in support among women and voters of color as the result of Harris’ addition, Republicans are hoping to peel off voters who might have considered voting for Biden, seen as a moderate choice.
“She and Vice President Biden complement each other. I think that their strengths are different,” Lewis Holley said. “I’m sure it’s going to bring women out of all races to come vote.”
‘A different light’
Harris, in her first event as the nominee, recounted that her parents “came to America from opposite ends of the world” and met at a civil rights protest in Oakland “marching and shouting for this thing called justice, in a struggle that continues to this day.”
She said she was “mindful of all the heroic—and ambitious—women before me whose sacrifice, determination, and resilience makes my presence here today even possible.”
The sight of Harris on that stage will inspire others. State Sen. Jay Chaudhuri, who represents parts of Wake County, was North Carolina’s first Indian-American lawmaker. He said, in a Twitter post, that the Harris pick shows “my daughter that she, too, can run for president.”
“For me, it’s about the next generation, and it’s about recapturing, restoring, and reviving the hope of this beautiful country,” Chaudhuri wrote in posts with photos of his family and Harris.
Lewis Holley said for too long Black women, in particular, have been “hidden figures and now we’re able to be out front and out front boldly.”
No woman has ever served as president or vice president. This marks the third time in four presidential elections that a woman will appear on the ticket for one of the two dominant parties.
“She’s paving the way for all these little black and brown girls and boys. I always say you can be what you see,” said U.S. Rep. Alma Adams of Charlotte. “I just believe she’s gonna shine a different kind of light.”
For more North Carolina government and politics news, listen to the Domecast politics podcast from The News & Observer and the NC Insider. You can find it on Megaphone, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Stitcher or wherever you get your podcasts.
This story was originally published August 14, 2020 at 5:55 AM with the headline "‘Shine a different kind of light.’ Democrats see Harris VP pick as energy for NC races."
