Young Democrats embrace Harris, but need convincing on Gaza

Young liberals are bursting with enthusiasm for Vice President Harris’s new White House campaign, pointing to a strong contrast between her and former President Trump, but some are concerned she is overlooking major concerns for students.  

Harris can piggyback off the accomplishments of the Biden administration on numerous issues college students care about, such as student loans, but, after weeks of protests over the Israel-Gaza war on campuses this year, others are worried that she, too, will fail to satisfy their demands over Palestine. 

“Kamala Harris is a superstar among Gen Z voters,” said Antonio Arellano, vice president of communications at Next Gen America. “My phone has been blowing up since the announcement that President Biden made last night, with young people that are now telling me they are enthusiastic to come out and cast their ballot, because it's going to be a monumental fight, but of historic proportions, and they know that they can make history. So I think the vibe has shifted. Excitement and enthusiasm are palpable.” 

Harris will be able to use her platform as vice president to point to accomplishments over the past four years such as creating a new income-driven repayment program for student loans and championing abortion rights across the country.  

“We have every hope that she will continue to advance and pursue aggressively additional relief for student debt, and to make sure that it is centered in her candidacy, because it remains top of mind for young voters as they make their way to the ballot box, among other key issues like abortion rights, the economy, climate change and of course, student debt being a key voting motivator for Gen Z and millennial voters,” Arellano said. 

The vice president will need reliable Democratic blocs such as young Americans to come out in force, as she is neck-and-neck in polls with former President Trump ahead of November.  

Trump leads Harris by two points, according to a survey from Decision Desk HQ and The Hill, 47 percent to 45 percent. Her favorability is also another weak spot, as 55.5 percent of Americans rate her unfavorably.  

One of the biggest advantages she has with young voters is her age: At 59, she is nearly 20 years younger than Trump.

“We think that she champions the values of youth the most right now,” said Sohali Vaddula, national director of communications for College Democrats of America. “She's younger and therefore a lot more relatable and appealing. The younger the president, the better. I mean, I think a lot of people's concern with President Biden was he's old, and Trump is not really that much younger.” 

Harris has has regular interactions with young voters, including a White House event for student athletes on Monday and on her “Fight for Our Freedoms College Tour,” where she talked to students about issues including abortion rights, climate change and gun safety.  

“This generation is critical to the urgent issues that are at stake right now for our future,” Harris said on the university tour. “It is young leaders throughout America who know what the solutions look like and are organizing in their communities to make them a reality. My message to students is clear: We are counting on you, we need you, you are everything.” 

Antjuan Seawright, a Democratic strategist, said that when reaching out to younger people, Harris should not “switch up the strategy or the tactic” but simply increase her interactions with them “because she has a unique ability to be able to not only understand and digest but articulate the answer to many of the problems that so many young people, younger people are facing in our country, particularly when it comes to quality life issues." 

Harris, however, faces at least one sizable dark spot on the horizon in winning over the youth vote: Many college students have soured on the administration over its Israel policies.

Thousands of individuals got arrested on college campuses this year protesting the Israel-Hamas war, calling on their schools to divest from Israel, an issue that is still stop of mind for students as the war in Gaza drags on.  

Evan Caldwell, co-char of the Young Democratic Socialists of America, is hoping for an open convention where others could be considered for Democratic nomination or at least advocate for positions further left than where he sees Harris going.  

“I think there's a lot of hope that the convention can select someone who not only will stand behind a free Palestine, but also those working class issues, and Kamala Harris, clearly, is not that candidate. She might be better suited to beat Trump than Biden, but she's still a corporate Democrat, working for corporate interests and not for everyday working people,” Caldwell said.  

He said for Harris to obtain the student vote she “must take additional steps to secure a free and dependent state of Palestine” and focus on their calls for free college, higher minimum age and a single-payer health care system. 

“All these kind of bread and butter demands that were promised when Biden and Harris ran the first time and were never even attempted to be rolled out,” Caldwell said.