In the run-up to the 2024 presidential race, Vice President Kamala Harris has been advised to steer clear of the "progressive" left's influence if she hopes to win over voters on key campaign issues.
This advice comes from John Della Volpe, an author and pollster for President Joe Biden's 2020 campaign.
As reported by Newsweek, Volpe, who also serves as the director of polling at the Institute of Politics at Harvard Kennedy School, made these remarks on a podcast. He argued that the progressive left has been "catastrophically wrong" on numerous issues, leading to significant setbacks for the Democrats. He pointed to Senator Elizabeth Warren's 2020 presidential campaign, which he believes was derailed by her support for Medicare for All. Similarly, he criticized those who championed the movement to defund the police following the George Floyd protests, asserting these progressive ideas are out of step with the general public's sentiments.
This podcast aired before Harris officially clinched the 2024 Democratic presidential nomination last Friday. Harris has stepped into the shoes of Biden, who decided not to seek reelection, thus paving the way for her to become the Democratic Party's leading presidential candidate. In the 2020 race, Biden had triumphed over both Warren and another progressive contender, Senator Bernie Sanders.
Volpe did not mince his words when discussing the progressive left. "Understand this, and I'm going to say this as clearly as I can, anybody that has ever listened to anything that progressive left has ever said has lived to profoundly regret it," he declared. "Literally on every issue, they're dead wrong."
He attributed the border crisis to Biden's decision to heed the progressive left's advice early in his term. "They weren't just wrong, they were catastrophically wrong. They're literally walking catastrophes. And the faster people realize that, the better off they're going to be," Volpe added.
Furthermore, Volpe downplayed the perceived influence and power that progressives wield within the Democratic Party, describing it as "totally exaggerated." He recently shared YouGov poll results on X, formerly known as Twitter, indicating that Harris is gaining traction among several key demographics for the 2024 race.
"The Biden coalition of younger voters, female voters and voters of color seems to be coming back together," Volpe observed. "The moderate voter bloc perhaps most important/interesting."
While Harris' team has been reached out for comment via email, Volpe also expressed his wish on the podcast for younger candidates to be considered for Harris' 2024 running mate. The current front-runners are Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, 51, Arizona Senator Mark Kelly, 60, and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, 60.
"Josh is 70 percent on predicted, so that means the markets think is going to be Shapiro," Volpe said. "But I have zero insight into it." As the nation awaits Harris' announcement of her vice presidential candidate, it remains to be seen whether she will heed Volpe's advice and distance herself from the progressive left.
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