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By Jesus Mesa and Gabe Whisnant
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Kamala Harris said Tuesday that her widely criticized 2024 appearance on The View wasn’t what cost her the election, despite admitting that the moment hurt her campaign.
Harris told The View, "I didn’t fully appreciate how much people wanted to know there was a difference between me and President Biden. I thought it was obvious, and I didn’t want to offer a difference in a way that would be received or suggested to be a criticism."
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Why It Matters
Speaking on The View to promote her memoir 107 Days, the former vice president addressed the moment when she told the hosts she would have done “not a thing” differently than President Joe Biden during his term — a remark that was quickly used in ads by Donald Trump’s campaign.
In the November 5, 2024, U.S. presidential election, Donald Trump defeated Kamala Harris with 312 electoral votes to her 226, also winning the popular vote by a margin of 49.8 percent to 48.3 percent.
What To Know
Despite the backlash, Kamala Harris said her 2024 appearance on The View did not cost her the election. “No, no,” she said when asked if that moment tipped the race. “There were many things. I do believe one of the biggest deciders of the outcome of that election was that the American people were sick of things being so expensive.”
The exchange came after cohost Sunny Hostin revisited the viral moment from October 2024, just 28 days before the election. “You said, ‘There is not a thing that comes to mind,’ when I asked what you would have done differently than President Biden,” Hostin said. “The Trump campaign weaponized your answer. Some, including James Carville and Jake Tapper, point to that as a turning point.”
Harris acknowledged the mistake but said the interview reflected a broader challenge. “That interview was symbolic of the issue,” she said. “I didn’t fully appreciate how much of an issue it was.”
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The comment was quickly turned into ads by Donald Trump’s campaign and spread across key swing states. In her book 107 Days, Harris wrote that she didn’t understand the impact in the moment. “I just pulled the pin on a hand grenade,” she wrote. “My staff was beside themselves.”
She pointed instead to the short window she had to campaign after President Biden dropped out. “There were many factors that I believe contributed to the outcome of the election,” Harris said. “But in my mind, the biggest was that we simply didn’t have enough time.”
The loss, she said, hit her deeply. “That night I grieved in a way I hadn’t since my mother died,” she said. “The pain wasn’t about losing the race—I knew what it was going to mean. All I could say was, ‘My God, my God, my God.’”
“In the end, the numbers were clear,” she said. “Donald Trump won 312 electoral votes. I had 226. He won [the popular vote] too—49.8 percent to my 48.3.”
Harris also defended Biden’s record, calling him a “highly capable president who accomplished great things that history will remember.” Asked if they still speak, she said, “I do speak to him. It's a good relationship.”
What People Are Saying
Harris, speaking about election night, said: “I knew what it was going to mean. And all I could say over and over again was, ‘My God, my God, my God.’ It was very difficult. Many people experienced it in different ways.”
Former President Joe Biden, speaking during a May appearance on The View, said: “I wasn’t surprised—not because I didn’t think the vice president was the most qualified person to be president. I wasn’t surprised because they went the sexist route—the whole route.”
What Happens Next
As for running again, Harris said it’s not on her radar. “That’s not my immediate focus,” she said. “I’m on my book tour.”
Update 09/23/25 12:58 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information.
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