Harris Campaign at a Crossroads | The hill

Sen. Kamala HarrisKamala Devi HarrisHigh Democrat Presidential Candidates Will Meet at City Hall on CNN Climate Biden and Buttigieg Bypass Democratic Delegates Meeting: Report of The Hill & # 39; s Morning – Trump on Defense Against Economic turmoil MORE (D-Calif.) Boosted Democratic fundraisers over the weekend with enthusiasm and recommendations to defeat President TrumpDonald John TrumpTrump pushes back data from recent polls and says the internal numbers are "the strongest we've seen so far". The state legislator of Illinois apologizes for the photos showing Trump Scaramucci's mock murder, bringing together a team of former Cabinet members to express their views. against Trump. MOREaccording to the donors who attended his events.

"I am confident that she will be the next president of the United States," Hill told The Hill long-time fundraiser after having sold out in the director's house. Spike Lee at Martha's Vineyard, an island in Massachusetts where dozens of Democratic brokers spend the summer. . The fundraiser was one of three events organized for the senator over the weekend.

Other donors echoed this sentiment, praising Harris' exuberance and his ability to excite people in the room.

The former Attorney General of California has long been considered a cross-call candidate, able to convince moderates like liberals, and able to ignite during the race.

But his campaign lost steam almost two months after an electrical performance in the first democratic debate, strategists and political observers said.

Five polls conducted after the second Democratic debate place it at a single figure, still behind the former vice president. Joe BidenJoe BidenEight: Democratic Presidential Candidates to Meet at City Hall on CNN Climate Hill reporter, Rafael Bernal: Biden attempts to save support for Latin Americans Biden, Buttigieg bypassing meeting of Democratic delegates: report and Sens. Elizabeth WarrenElizabeth Ann WarrenConseiller Top Sanders: Warren is not competing for the same group of voters. Eight Democratic presidential candidates will run for CNN's climate hall. Major CEOs believe that shareholder value is not the primary objective (Mass.) And Bernie SandersBernie Sanders Senior Sanders Advisor: Warren is not competing for the "same pool of voters" Eight Democratic presidential candidates will appear at CNN's climate forum A senior assistant, Jeff Weaver, exposes the Way of Victory Sanders MORE (I-Vt.).

As a result, Harris's journey into an enclave of democratic base at the height of the summer vacation arrives with his campaign at a crossroads.

Daughter of an Indian mother and a Jamaican father, Harris has an inspiring story and life that seem to speak of his era.

She has assets that compare favorably to all her major rivals, because of her age, ethnicity and even her state: she is a Californian to the heart, she grew up in a state that is now a bastion of power Democrat. She is a relatively new face on the national political scene, but she also has experience as a former Attorney General and now a senator.

Yet Harris also has weaknesses, which some strategists say have been exacerbated by his campaign so far.

It positions itself both as a progressive and as a moderate, which gives it the impression of "authentic," said a Democratic strategist.

"I still think no one really understands why she's running," said the strategist. "And if you run for president and you do not know why you are running, no one else will do it either."

Earlier this month, FiveThirtyEight's Nate Silver said Harris "seems to be trapped between Joe Biden, on the one hand, and Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders, on the other hand more leaning left."

"And that's starting to show up in the numbers," said Silver.

He referred to a quinnipiac poll that showed that there was "no group of Democrats – say rich, young or black" among whom Harris questioned more than 10% of respondents.

The large group, which has two dozen candidates, has also made it difficult for Harris, political observers said.

"It's so difficult in a field of two dozen to attract attention on a relatively regular basis and if you do not have that attention, you tend to lose focus," he said. Cal Jillson, Professor of Political Science at Southern Methodist University. "And it really happened to almost everyone."

Jillson said that although Harris had her breakthrough time in the first debate, when she challenged Biden's opposition to the federal bus, the "second sense of the electorate was more contrasted".

A spokesman for the Harris campaign did not respond to a request for comment.

Another strategist, who is not associated with any of these campaigns, said that Harris had suffered because she was "very cautious with her approach," making comparisons with Hillary ClintonHillary Diane Rodham Clinton, Top Sanders Advisor: Warren is not competing for the same pool of voters. The anti-Trump veterans join the Steyer group to pressure the Democrats for what they accuse of the return of the Trump Republicans' plot in New Jersey. MOREThe cautious campaign of 2016.

Basil Smikle, who was executive director of the Democratic Party of New York State and a former Clinton aide, said Harris had failed to overcome the initial perception of his candidacy.

"To his detriment, many voters first saw Harris as a wise choice of vice president for a person like Biden and she did not own the integrated national riding that Biden, Warren or Sanders possessed," Smikle said. .

But Smikle said it was time for Harris to recover.

"She is well established in the top group of candidates and benefits from any slippage of Biden's black voters and the redistribution of support as the others emerge from the race," he said, adding that, for the moment, "Harris has the money to stay competitive through the early states and maybe up to the super Tuesday, when his home state, California, will have the right to vote."

Another factor that could play in favor of Harris: Biden's recent verbal gaffes.

"His lead is a bit tenuous," said Jillson. "And once below him, there are negatives with Sanders and Warren with people who think they are too far left.

"What this means for Kamala Harris, is to be as solid as possible to always be there for a second look," he added. "Some people who look beyond Biden and see Bernie and Elizabeth Warren will continue to search."