Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Harris/Trump election ‘would be choice between prosecutor and criminal’

Vice president Kamala Harris served as district attorney and attorney general in California before being elected to the Senate.

Natasha Leake
Monday 22 July 2024 16:42 EDT
The vice president has talked for years about criminal justice reform (Alex Brandon/AP)
The vice president has talked for years about criminal justice reform (Alex Brandon/AP) (AP)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

A US election featuring Donald Trump and Kamala Harris would give voters “a choice between the prosecutor and the criminal”, a Democratic Party group has said.

Vice president Ms Harris is the frontrunner to be the Democratic nominee for the US presidential election in November, after president Joe Biden dropped his re-election bid following concerns within the party that he would be unable to defeat Republican nominee Mr Trump.

A spokesperson for Democrats Abroad has described Ms Harris as an “energising factor” in the wake of Mr Biden’s resignation.

If (Ms Harris) becomes the nominee, then voters have a choice between the prosecutor and the criminal in the November election. And I think that really draws an appropriate and stark contrast between what the Democrats are offering and what the Republicans are offering

John Scardino, Democrats Abroad

John Scardino, a spokesperson for Democrats Abroad, told the PA news agency that he believed Ms Harris would unite America.

Mr Scardino said: “She’s a hard worker. She is incredibly intelligent and I do think she is going to be out there campaigning like crazy to get every vote that she possibly can.”

He added: “If she becomes the nominee, then voters have a choice between the prosecutor and the criminal in the November election.

“And I think that really draws an appropriate and stark contrast between what the Democrats are offering and what the Republicans are offering.

“I think that there is a lot of excitement about her as the potential nominee.”

Ms Harris is the first woman, black person and person of South Asian descent to serve as vice president.

If she becomes the Democratic nominee and defeats Mr Trump in November, she would be the first woman to serve as president.

Mr Scardino said that this “sends a message … to some voters who may not have been as enthusiastic about the choices in the election, that this may be somebody that they feel may be more sensitive to their issues”.

“So I think it’s an energising choice. I think that Kamala Harris as a candidate can be a real energising factor,” he said.

In the last 24 hours since Biden announced that he was stepping down ... there's 100 million US dollars that has been donated to Democratic candidates. And of that, about half has gone to Kamala Harris. These are record-breaking amounts ... it is an indicator of where support may lie

John Scardino, Democrats Abroad

He added: “I think Kamala Harris, in carrying forward a lot of the programmes that Joe Biden has set in motion, could potentially appeal to a lot of those voters who feel disaffected by the Republican Party led by Donald Trump.”

Mr Biden said on Sunday that choosing Ms Harris as his running mate was “the best decision I’ve made” and endorsed her as his successor.

Mr Scardino added that he believed Ms Harris had the “opportunity” to be “a unifier”.

He said: “In the last 24 hours since Biden announced that he was stepping down … there’s 100 million US dollars that has been donated to Democratic candidates. And of that, about half has gone to Kamala Harris.

“These are record-breaking amounts … it is an indicator of where support may lie. So when you look at the amount of support that has flooded into not only supporting Kamala Harris, but I think Democrats in general, (it is) a very good indicator of her, of the opportunity that she has to be a unifier.”

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in