Newswise — ALBANY, N.Y. (July 24, 2024) — When President Joe Biden announced Sunday his decision to exit the race for president and throw his support behind Vice President Kamala Harris, he opened the door for the United States to elect a woman — and a woman of color — as president for the first time. Harris has already garnered enough delegate support to become the Democratic Party’s nominee.
The University at Albany has faculty experts who can speak to historical, legal and social implications of the new race between Harris and former President Donald Trump. UAlbany also has two political science faculty members available to speak on gender, race and identity in regard to the campaign, the election and the public perception of the candidates.
Cammie Jo Bolin and Justin Zimmerman are both assistant professors of political science in UAlbany’s Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy.
Bolin’s research explores questions of identity, representation and participation in political and religious contexts in the United States.
“President Biden’s decision to withdraw from the 2024 presidential election and Vice President Harris’s likely emergence as the Democratic nominee will bring issues of identity to the forefront of the 2024 election,” she said. “Political science research on gender demonstrates the ways that Harris’ identity as a woman can serve as both a hindrance and an asset to her campaign. Beyond the outcome of the 2024 presidential election, Harris’s candidacy has the potential to empower women and girls to think about politics in new ways.”
Zimmerman teaches American politics with a focus on Black politics and urban politics.
“President Biden's endorsement of Kamala Harris's candidacy for the presidency has reinvigorated what democracy and representation could be like in the United States. Black people, especially Black women, have been the backbone of the Democratic Party, and now an HBCU graduate and member of a Black sorority is possibly months away from the presidency,” he said. “Yet, with her ascension to the top of the ticket comes the question of whether Black faces in high places are ever enough. Kamala Harris will face critiques of her time as a prosecutor from those most affected by the predatory policies of the criminal justice system, as well as a tremendous amount of sexism and anti-Black sentiment. Whether or not the prejudices that often hinder Black women can be overcome is unknown, though many have hope.”
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