Donald Trump secured over 270 electoral votes to win the 2024 US presidential election, defeating Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris. In light of this historic victory, some have speculated whether the outcome could have been different had Joe Biden remained in the race. CNN’s Jake Tapper and John King discussed this question during a Wednesday morning broadcast, with King presenting data that left Tapper shocked.
Data Shows Harris Didn’t Outperform Biden in Any State
During the broadcast, Tapper asked CNN’s Chief National Correspondent John King whether there were any states where Harris had outperformed President Biden’s 2020 performance. King responded by showing a slide revealing that Harris failed to outperform Biden by 3% or more in any state.
“Here’s what we bring out… Harris overperforming 2020,” King said as he presented the data. The slide clearly demonstrated that in no state did Harris exceed Biden’s performance by the significant margin of 3%.
Tapper’s Shock at Harris’s Performance
Visibly surprised by the data, Tapper exclaimed, “Holy smokes! Literally nothing?” King confirmed, “Literally nothing.” When Tapper further inquired whether Harris had outperformed Biden in any county, King clarified that the data pertained to states, not individual counties.
Harris’s Marginal Gains in Only 58 Counties
King then displayed another slide showing that Harris had outperformed Biden by at least 3% in just 58 counties across the country. He noted that this was a small fraction compared to Trump’s performance, saying, “We just showed Donald Trump was over a thousand counties of the 4,600 counties and townships across America.”
King went on to explain that while Harris had some gains, particularly in a few battleground areas, the numbers were still far behind Trump’s performance in key regions. For example, in battleground Pennsylvania, she outperformed Biden in just one county by 3% or more.
Trump’s Wide Appeal Across Battlegrounds
King continued to emphasize that Trump’s strength lay in the broad appeal he had in a large number of counties across the United States. “There might be more out here on the West Coast, possibly one or two more as they finish the count here,” King remarked, highlighting Trump’s dominance in crucial swing states that played a key role in his victory.
Takeaways for the 2024 Election Results
As the dust settles on the 2024 election results, the data on Harris’s performance raises questions about her appeal compared to Biden’s. Despite Biden’s previous success in 2020, Harris’s inability to outperform him in key battleground states may have had significant implications for the election outcome. Meanwhile, Trump’s widespread support in various counties remains a critical factor in his path to victory.