Recent Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll results reveal that both Democrat men and women perceive Vice President Kamala Harris’s gender as more of a liability compared to how they viewed Hillary Clinton eight years ago. The poll suggests that Democrats are experiencing an increased political bias against women in politics, although data across all Americans does not necessarily support this perception.
Hillary Clinton, the two-time failed presidential candidate and election denier, pushed back on the perceived notion among Democrats. She stated to AP reporters that there is now a broader perspective when it comes to women who run for office as they no longer just have one image of a woman who has run for president, referring to herself.
Despite the apparent shift in Democratic perceptions, Clinton remains optimistic about Harris’s chances of defeating former President Donald Trump. In contrast, Americans as a whole are more likely to see Trump’s gender as an election asset, with about 4 in 10 U.S. adults believing that being male will help his chances of being elected.
The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll found a shift in attitudes among U.S. adults between the candidacies of the first and second female major-party nominees, with the change largely driven by Democratic men. About 3 in 10 Democratic men thought Clinton’s gender would hurt her “somewhat” or “a lot” before her loss to Trump. About half now say that about Harris.
Similarly, Democratic women have grown more likely to believe that being a woman could be a hurdle for a presidential candidate: around 4 in 10 Democratic women said Clinton’s gender would hurt her, and about half say that about Harris now. Republican men only shifted slightly, while Republican women’s views remained stable.
The Associated Press poll sampled 2,028 adults from September 12-16, with a plus or minus 3.1 percentage point margin of error.