Kamala Harris campaign aide admits she never surpassed Trump in internal polls

A top aide to Vice President Kamala Harris during her presidential campaign recently revealed that internal polls never showed her defeating President-elect Donald Trump. David Plouffe, a senior adviser to Harris, made this revelation on the Pod Save America podcast hosted by former President Barack Obama’s staffers.

Plouffe admitted that the campaign did not get the breaks they needed on Election Day, leading to their loss to Trump. He explained that despite public polls showing Harris with leads in late September and early October, the internal polls told a different story. The campaign was aware of their electoral weaknesses in battleground states, which ultimately contributed to their defeat.

Joining Plouffe on the podcast were other top Harris aides, including Jen O’Malley Dillon, Stephanie Cutter, and Quentin Fulks. Together, they discussed the reasons behind Harris’ loss and how they believed they could have performed better. Despite rivaling Trump in several public polls and even defeating him in some, the campaign ultimately fell short in key battleground states.

Plouffe acknowledged that when Harris became the nominee, she was initially behind in the polls. The campaign worked hard to close the gap, but ultimately it was a close race by the end. However, this information was seemingly obscured from donors and other relevant parties who were led to believe that Harris had a real shot at winning.

One DNC National Finance Committee member and Harris campaign fundraiser, Lindy Li, expressed surprise at the disconnect between what the campaign was telling donors and the reality of their polling deficit. She shared that donors’ trust will need to be rebuilt after the campaign’s disappointing outcome.

Li also emphasized that the extent of Harris’ defeat was shocking, as it was not even a close race. The decisive defeat has left donors and supporters questioning the campaign’s messaging and strategy.

Moving forward, the Harris campaign will need to address these discrepancies and rebuild trust with donors and supporters. The revelations from Plouffe and Li shed light on the challenges faced by the campaign and the need for transparency and honesty in political messaging.

Julia Johnson is a politics writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business, leading coverage of the U.S. Senate. She was previously a politics reporter at the Washington Examiner. Follow Julia’s reporting on X at @JuliaaJohnson_ and send tips to Julia.Johnson@fox.com.