Former Vice President Kamala Harris said on Tuesday, September 23, that a key reason behind her loss to President Trump in the 2024 election was that she “didn’t have enough time” to run a fully effective campaign. “There are many factors, I think, that played into the outcome of that election, but I think probably one of the biggest in my mind is we just didn’t have enough time,” Harris said during an appearance on ABC’s The View.

The former Democratic nominee also revisited a moment from the campaign trail that many analysts said contributed to her loss. In a pre-election appearance on the same show, co-host Sunny Hostin asked whether she would have done anything differently than President Biden, under whom she served from 2021 to 2025. Without putting too much on the gravity of the question Harris had replied at the time: there was “not a thing that comes to mind … and I’ve been a part of, of, of most of the decisions that have had impact.”

Reflecting on that exchange, Harris said on Tuesday that she was attempting to strike a balance. “I’m a loyal person and I didn’t fully appreciate how much people wanted to know there was a difference between me and President Biden,” she said. In her new book, ‘107 Days,’ Harris described the impact of that moment.


As quoted by Deadline, she wrote, “I had no idea I’d just pulled the pin on a hand grenade,” acknowledging she had unwittingly handed “a gift to the Trump campaign.”

Why Kamala harris lost 2024 election

Describing her campaign as ‘unprecedented,’ she said with just 107 days left until Election Day, President Biden abruptly announced he would not seek re-election, leaving Harris, then the sitting vice president, to step in as the Democratic nominee against Donald Trump, who had effectively been campaigning for a decade. Harris noted that the compressed timeline and extraordinary circumstances made it nearly impossible to build a fully competitive campaign, which she sees as a key factor in her defeat.

Trump on Harris’s loss

According to excerpts of her book reviewed by The New York Times, Kamala Harris recalled that during her concession call to Donald Trump, she urged him to help unify the country but realized in that moment it was "a lost cause."

As per the Times, Trump responded, "I am going to be so nice and respectful." He added, "You are a tough, smart customer, and I say that with great respect. And you also have a beautiful name. I got use of that name; it's Kamala." The outlet noted that Trump pronounced her name correctly on the call, after frequently mispronouncing it during the campaign.

Harris also reflected on her choice of a running mate, explaining why she did not pick former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. "He would have been an ideal partner," she wrote, "if I were a straight white man. But we were already asking a lot of America: to accept a woman, a Black woman, a Black woman married to a Jewish man. But knowing what was at stake, it was too big of a risk," according to an excerpt cited by the Times.

Biden called 2024 loss a ‘setback’

Former president Joe Biden referred to 2024 presidential candidate Kamala Harris' defeat by Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election as a "setback." He said, as CBS quoted, ‘Setbacks are unavoidable, but giving up is unforgivable.’ He urged Americans to embrace unity and said he accepted the results of the election.

The campaign, in which Harris said she spoke on the campaign trail about wanting to lower inflation, extend child tax credits, and find new approaches to health care topics, she thought made her case. Biden also praised Harris' campaign during his remarks, ‘She ran an inspiring campaign, and everyone got to see something that I learned early on to respect so much — her character,’

‘She has a backbone like a ramrod, she has great character, true character. She gave her whole heart and effort, and she and her entire team should be proud of the campaign they ran.’ Biden added.