Will Men Vote for Kamala Harris? Polls Paint Bleak Picture for Democrats

Vice President Kamala Harris is struggling to gain support among male voters, according to polls.

A new poll, conducted by the Economist and YouGov between July 21 and 23, found that just 39 percent of men said they would vote for Harris, while 47 percent said they would vote for former President Donald Trump. The poll surveyed 1,435 registered voters and had a margin of error of 3.1 percent.

Another poll conducted by Emerson College between July 22 and 23 had a similar result, with male voters choosing Trump over Harris in most swing states. Trump had the largest lead over Harris among male voters in Michigan, where he held a 16-point lead, 54 to 38. His lead in Pennsylvania was slightly smaller, with 55 percent of male voters backing him for a 15-point lead.

In Arizona and Wisconsin, Trump led by 13 points, while in Georgia he led by 10 points. The poll was conducted among 800 to 845 people in each state and had a margin of error of 3 percent.

In the latest poll of the New York Times and Siena College between July 22 and 24, 37 percent of men said they would vote for Harris, while 56 percent said they would vote for Trump.

Newsweek reached out to Harris’s campaign via email for comment.

The results come after Democrats made gains among men in the 2020 election, with a gap of just 2 points between Trump and President Joe Biden (50 percent to 48 percent). That was wider than in 2016, when Trump won men by 11 points (52 percent to 41 percent).

Male voters historically favor Republican candidates, while women generally favor Democrats. According to the Center for American Women and Politics, which analyzes historical election data, there has been a gender gap in every presidential election since 1980.

Carrie Baker, professor of women, gender and sexuality at Smith College in Massachusetts, said Newsweek that to win the male vote, Democrats “need to develop a message that is focused on men and that focuses on policy issues, not on Harris as the first female president.”

Harris, the first woman to become vice president in US history, would also become the first female president of the US.

According to a recent survey from the Young Men’s Research Initiative, conducted July 9-23, men ages 18 to 29 were more likely to support female candidates than Trump when confronted with their policies, including support for good-paying jobs and affordable housing, than when confronted with arguments revolving around the importance of the first female president. The survey polled 1,092 men in that age range.

“The trend of young men turning away from Democrats and their increasing sexism should be a major concern for candidates of all stripes,” wrote the author of the Young Men’s Research Initiative study. “But we can’t give up on half of a generation that will have another 50 years to vote. This research shows that we can make progress by changing how we talk about Democratic issues that young men already support. We should use targeted messaging to reach them.”

Harris’ campaign message has sought to emphasize her record as a prosecutor in comparison to Trump’s criminal charges. References to Harris as the potential first female president in U.S. history have been relatively rare.

Dr Jonathan Parker, senior lecturer in American politics at Keele University in the UK, said Newsweek that there is “no doubt” that Harris will still “face opposition from some people because of her gender and her race.”

“That was one of the main reasons for nominating Biden in 2020,” he said.

Baker added, however, that she is confident that America “is ready for Harris and what she has to offer in terms of policies that really help people.”

The Economist/YouGov poll found that 25 percent of men answered “no” when asked if they hope the U.S. elects its first female president. That’s compared to 23 percent of female voters surveyed who said “no.”