Kamala Harris has a great chance to win presidency and stop Donald Trump

Judson L. Jeffries, PhD is a professor of African American and African studies at the Ohio State University and a regular contributor to the Columbus Dispatch

No woman in the history of presidential elections has been better positioned to make a viable run for the White House than Vice President Kamala Harris. The former U.S. Senator and Attorney General of California is more qualified than any African American who has ever tossed his or hat into that ring.

What’s more, when examining the offices she has held over the course of her career one finds that her resume is stronger than anyone who has held the office of president since Calvin Coolidge was elected 100 years ago.

Unlike other women and candidates of color whose credentials have historically been called into question, such a criticism does not stick when it comes to Vice President Harris. Her bona fides are indisputable.

Thus, we arrive at the $64,000 question: Does Harris have a realistic chance of winning? The answer is yes.

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One of the tallest orders for any candidate for president is raising enough money to be competitive. Typically, but not always, the candidate that raises the most money wins. No thanks to former President Barack Obama — whose war chest exceeded more than $1 billion in 2008 — the amount of money that candidates need to raise to make a credible run at the White House is obscene.

There was a six-month period when the Obama campaign netted more than $75 million. Harris needed just days to surpass that.

Then there is the matter of party support. Reports out of Washington state Harris has the unwavering support of the party, something that been hard to come by for women and candidates of color when running for offices such as governor, Congress and president.

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If Harris’s fundraising apparatus is any indication of her support, Harris appears in good shape.

Candidates who have lukewarm party support typically are doomed from the outset. Strong party support is often measured by, but not limited to, the number of endorsements by the party’s influentials, the number of newspaper endorsements by legacy media, the extent to which legacy media takes the candidate seriously and the amount of media coverage (historically: TV, radio and print) devoted to the candidate’s campaign.

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Additionally, candidates of color need to campaign in a way that appeals to a broad spectrum of the electorate. Specifically, they must champion issues that transcend race such as taxes, the environment, the economy, education, unemployment, healthcare and gun control. They need to be tough on crime and demonstrate a familiarity with foreign policy.

Women candidates are forced to walk an unstable tightrope when campaigning against a male candidate. Women who criticize their male counterparts run the risk of being framed in a pejorative manner. Too often, they are viewed unfairly as harsh, petty and hateful.

Case in point: during the 2006 Massachusetts race for governor. Republican Lt. Gov. Kerry Healey was depicted as scornful and argumentative by the media and others for her no holds-barred attacks on Deval Patrick.

For some reason, similar stereotypical themes are not attributed to men when they berate women candidates.

Given the frenzy that surrounds Donald Trump and the lengths to which his overzealous supporters went to keep Trump in office on that unforgettable day in January, Harris will need a record voter turnout. She needs Black support that equaled Obama in 2008 and record levels of support from the Latinx, Asian American and Jewish communities. Obama garnered 39% of the white vote in 2012; Harris will need upward of forty percent.

There have been reports of Harris following the model or playbook laid out by Hillary Clinton. My response: Only if Harris is interested in knowing what not to do.

In 2008, Clintonlost to a young upstart who was barely known outside of Illinois and who had not even completed a full term in the U.S. Senate. In 2016, she lost to a man who not only never held elected office, but had never ran for elected office.

Harris is on track to chart her own history making course of action. Using the Hillary Clinton template would only derail that.

Judson L. Jeffries, PhD is a professor of African American and African studies at the Ohio State University and a regular contributor to the Columbus Dispatch