What do voters like about Kamala Harris? Here’s what they say

CHANDLER, Ariz. — Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign rallies are meant to evoke “joy” and youthfulness. Consider the playlist at Thursday night’s rally, which featured Charlie XCX’s “BRAT” album, among other pop hits, or the LED light bracelets handed out that mimic the experience of a Taylor Swift concert.
But will that be enough for Harris to defeat her opponent, former President Donald Trump? And is her message working in a place like Arizona, a swing state where Harris is running just a few points behind Trump in most polls?
Trump has been attacking Harris over the Biden-Harris administration’s handling of the border and the economy, two issues where she has some vulnerabilities.
The Deseret News spoke to several voters at Thursday’s rally at the Rawhide Event Center in Chandler. A majority of them said their top reason for supporting Harris is because of her promise to protect abortion rights.
Other reasons given were Harris’ proposed tax policies and her foreign policy experience during a time when two wide-ranging global conflicts — between Israel and Iran-backed militias in the Middle East, and Ukraine and Russia — persist.
Patricia Maisel, 75, a retired business owner, wore dozens of badges to the rally and a shirt that said “Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America.” She said she survived the 2011 Tucson shooting, where former Rep. Gabby Giffords was the intended target.
“I’m here and supporting Kamala to make common sense gun laws the law of the land so that children don’t have to be afraid to go to school, that their teachers aren’t carrying firearms,” she said. And abortion rights were next on her list.
After the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, Harris became the face of the issue, and eventually, it became a central part of the messaging of her presidential campaign.
Maisel was one of more than 7,000 attendees at the rally, a number reported by the Harris campaign. Fifty-six-year-old Don Verret, a retired veteran, also said abortion rights is the No. 1 issue that brought him to the rally.
“My belief is this, you wouldn’t ask a doctor to fly a plane,” Verret said, adding, “She believes in the military, unlike her opponent.”
He wore a shirt that said, “I’m a Veteran, not a sucker or a loser,” a criticism leveled at Trump over alleged remarks from 2020.
“When he disrespected the military by going to Arlington National Cemetery … by calling us suckers and losers, and by saying that the Medal of Freedom is way better than a Medal of Honor, that lost me right then and there,” Verett said. Harris, on the other hand, is “bringing people together,” he added.
Mom of four Kimberly Kennedy, 47, called herself the No. 1 Harris supporter in Arizona. She said she has attended every rally of Harris’ in the state, including one in Glendale in early August, when Harris visited alongside her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.
“I woke up this morning, and I was like, ‘Today’s going be a good day. We are getting some Kamala,’” she said.
What is it about Harris that Kennedy loves so much? “It’s how she tells the story for the American people. She’s very passionate about doing the right thing all the time, when no one’s looking and when everyone’s looking. She makes the right decisions for all of us.”
As a mother, the most important issue to her is protecting women’s reproductive rights, she said. Kennedy added she is confident Arizona will turn blue for Harris.
Carrie Duff, 68, retired, gives Kennedy’s enthusiasm some competition. She also said she saw Harris in Glendale.
“I stood about a foot and a half from her as she exited the stage, and I was able to see how engaged she was, how real she is with people,” Duff said, adding, “I shook Tim Walz’s hand.”
“I’m not childless, but I have cats, so I’m part of the cat lady thing, and I’ve been working where I live in Tucson, Arizona, going out and knocking on doors and campaigning,”
Of course, there are also voters like Natasha Peacock, 44, a mental health therapist, and Sean Peterson, 34, an IT professional, who said they are still learning about the two candidates.
Peacock said she is “definitely voting,” and had been looking forward to seeing Harris. Peacock said Harris’ priorities are her top three issues: health care, immigration and international affairs. Peterson said he sees Harris as the best option and so he attended the rally to see for himself.
Peterson said he couldn’t remember an election like this one in his lifetime, where GOP voters were willing to vote for the other side of the aisle. “That’s historical. That says something,” he added. Peterson is a registered Democrat but said he thinks “independently” and “(questions) everything.”
Harris, who is 59, presented herself as the youthful alternative to Trump, who is 78.
“It’s time to turn the page and America is ready for a new way forward,” Harris said, repeating her latest campaign slogan. She said she would “stand up for the underdog,” whether that’s seniors facing elder abuse or workers being cheated out of their wages.
Harris also spoke of the “sandwich generation,” those who are taking care of their children and their elderly parents.
“The emotional, the physical, the mental burden that you are carrying just trying to take care of your family,” she said. “We need to have policies in our country that see you and lift you up, knowing it is a matter of dignity.”
Harris acknowledged that in the waning weeks of the 2024 race, she has her work cut out for her.
The first day of voting in Arizona was on Wednesday, and both vice presidential candidates, Republican Sen. JD Vance and Gov. Tim Walz, a Democrat, held rallies in the state this week to try to energize voters. Trump is expected to hold a rally in Prescott, Arizona, on Sunday.
Catriona Forrest, 41, a veterinarian, and her 8-year-old son Angus, got up close next to Harris after she gave her remarks. The young boy told the Deseret News he shook hands with the vice president and described his second rally — Angus went to his first one as a toddler — as a “cool” experience. Meanwhile, his mother said she’s buying Harris’ message: “If you compare it to the message coming from the other side, I think Kamala’s message is full of joy. It’s full of hope. It’s about moving the country forward,” she said.