Kamala Harris Stunned by 2024 Loss, Blames Timing and Biden’s Exit, New Book Reveals

Former Vice President Kamala Harris was reportedly shocked by her defeat to President Trump in the November election, after she “bought the hype” that her campaign was on solid ground, according to a new book on the 2024 Presidential race.

“She was completely shocked, and Tim Walz was shocked,” said Amie Parnes, a journalist for The Hill and co-author of FIGHT: Inside the Wildest Battle for the White House*, during an appearance on the podcast Somebody’s Gotta Win.

Parnes recounted that Minnesota Governor Tim Walz was left speechless by Harris’ unexpected loss.

“He has no words,” she told Palmeri, recalling how Walz sat quietly in his hotel room on election night while campaign aides attempted to explain the outcome.

According to Parnes, Harris was equally stunned and questioned the results in the moment. “And people are kind of explaining to him, same thing with [Harris]. And she’s like, ‘Are you sure? Have we done a recount? Should we do a recount?’”

“They thought that they were going to win,” Parnes added. “And so, you know, when they come back now and say, ‘Oh no, we didn’t really have a chance.’ No, that’s not what they were thinking. They thought they were going to win.”

Parnes further shared that members of Harris’ team felt misled by top campaign leaders who assured them things were on track. Harris, the reporter said, believed the narrative.

“Kamala Harris was looking at her crowd size, and they felt like the vibe was strong and people were saying, ‘Oh, we have more boots on the ground. We’re doing better in fundraising.’ And she bought all of that. She bought the hype, and so did a lot of people in the campaign,” Parnes said.

Following the loss, Harris confided in friends that she could have defeated Trump if the election had been held later or if President Biden had bowed out earlier before stepping aside on July 21, the book claims.

“She could have won, she told friends, if only the election was later in the calendar — or she got in earlier. In other words, Joe Biden was to blame,” write Parnes and co-author Jonathan Allen in the book, as quoted by Fox News.

However, not everyone in Harris’ circle agrees with that view.

“That is bonkers,” one friend told Parnes and Allen. “If Election Day was October first, we might have actually somehow pulled it off. Shorter was actually better, not longer.”

A campaign adviser told the NY Post the campaign was lacking fundamentally: “I don’t think we needed more time … We needed more substance. And she did not have more substance.”

The book also sheds light on former President Barack Obama’s reservations about Harris’ candidacy. According to Allen, Obama was hesitant to support Harris after Biden’s withdrawal, doubting her ability to win against Trump.

“He didn’t think that she was the best choice for Democrats, and he worked really behind the scenes for a long time to try to have a mini-primary, or an open convention, or a mini-primary leading to an open convention, did not have faith in her ability to win the election,” Allen said in an interview on MSNBC.

“As it turned out, she didn’t win, but he was really working against her,” Allen added.