In her quest to become the first female president, Vice President Kamala Harris portrayed herself as a champion of women's rights, putting abortion rights at the forefront of her campaign.
But she fell short, South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem explains in an interview, because in doing so, Harris and the Democrats failed to meet voters where they are.
"I think what was so interesting during this campaign is we consistently saw Kamala Harris and the Democrats try to put women in a box," Noem told Fox News Digital. "They tried to define women as only caring about abortion and their health care. They didn't really give them due credit for being the individuals out there that are raising families and caring about their children's education and paying their bills and pursuing their careers."
Among the more surprising findings from the 2024 election is that Harris under-performed with women compared to President Biden's support four years ago.
HARRIS FORMALLY CONCEDES ONE DAY AFTER TRUMP'S SWEEPING VICTORY
President-elect Trump prevailed Tuesday in a decisive victory, sweeping all the key battleground states and winning a majority in the national popular vote – the first time a Republican has done so in 20 years. Voter concerns about the economy and immigration propelled Trump's triumphant return to the White House. But he also expanded his base with traditionally Democratic constituencies, including Black, Hispanic and young voters, according to the Fox News Voter Analysis.
The election showcased many of the nation's deep divides, particularly in gender. Men voted for Trump by 10 points, while women supported Harris by 8 points. The 18-point gender gap was slightly bigger than in the 2020 presidential election (17 points).
That widening was due to Trump improving 5 points among men since 2020. But Harris also under-performed with women compared to President Biden, who won the female vote by 12 points.
Harris became the Democratic frontrunner after President Biden suspended his bid for re-election in July amid reports of his declining mental acuity in the wake of a poor debate performance against Trump in June. Biden quickly endorsed Harris, who made "reproductive rights" a top issue on the campaign trail, a strategy that would ultimately not win over enough swing state voters. Harris was the Democrat nominee for only about four months.
GOP strategists told Fox News Digital that the Harris campaign's abortion strategy was ineffective against Trump, who had argued the issue returned to the states after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022.
Noem added that abortion is just not the only priority for women in America. She campaigned for Trump in Pennsylvania and other swing states, promoting his policies and taking questions from voters.
"We've got women running businesses that want their communities to be safe. They want to thrive. And they certainly don't want a president that doesn't protect women and the opportunities they have in front of them," she told Fox News Digital.
The governor also criticized Harris' team for "minimizing women" in the closing weeks of the election, referencing how Harris surrogate Mark Cuban had said Trump never surrounds himself with "strong, intelligent women."
"They even went so far as to call women weak and dumb, you know, by their surrogtates. And I think that was offensive to many of us across the country," said Noem.
She also said the Democrats' far-left positions on abortion and transgender issues have made it easier for Republicans to take "common sense" positions that most Americans agree with.
"Kamala Harris and her Democratic Party have become more and more extreme on gender issues, on abortion. It's easier for Republicans and our candidates and President Trump to use common sense to talk to the American people about truly how extreme the Democrats want to take this country and what we can do to make sure that every single person in this country, whether you're a man or woman, that you get an opportunity," she said.
The Trump campaign and associated political action committees leaned in to the culture wars with millions of dollars spent on ads that attacked Democrats and Harris as too liberal on gender issues.
"Kamala is for they/them. Trump is for you," one of Trump's strongest attack ads concluded. The New York Times reported that Trump's anti-trans ads shifted the race 2.7 percentage points in Trump's favor after viewers watched it.
Noem has also fought the culture wars. In South Dakota, she signed legislation that banned puberty blockers, cross-sex hormone treatments and sex-change operations for transgender individuals under the age of 18. She has spoken repeatedly about keeping biological men who identify as transgender out of women's sports and protecting opportunities for women and girls.
"President Trump is not going to let mediocre men take away opportunities for our outstanding women," Noem said. It was Harris, she argued, who would have women on an "uncompetitive playing field."
Asked if she had discussed joining the new administration, Noem said she had not had any conversations with the president-elect about a job.
"He knows I'll help him any way that I can. But I spoke to him today, and he's in great spirits. He's looking forward to getting his administration set up. And I think he's already getting phone calls from world leaders and working with people on his transition team to make sure that he's ready to hit the ground running."
"I love being the governor of South Dakota," she added. "So we'll continue to be a strong advocate for President Trump. He's my friend, I'm so happy for him. And if he asks me to do something, well, we'll make a decision at that time."
