Women outstrip men in early voting, leaving Trump to rethink his strategies

Republican Donald Trump along with Democrat Kamala Harris was invited by Alex Cooper, the popular podcaster behind “Call Her Daddy” but the idea was dismissed by Trump’s campaign, reported CNN.

Cooper told her millions of audiences, most of them women: “If he also wants to have a meaningful and in-depth conversation about women’s rights in this country, then he is welcome on ‘Call Her Daddy’ anytime.”

With little time left in the US 2024 presidential elections, Trump has diverted his focus to America’s young men through appearances on right-leaning, male-dominated online shows, probably a strategy that may help Trump counterbalance the support of women for Harris.

Throughout the late summer and early fall, Trump’s allies and advisors were leaning back, thinking that his strategy of gathering support from men would make up for the lack of support from female voters, but in recent weeks this widening gender gap has alarmed some of the Republicans.

Trump’s campaign advised him not to repeat promises to be women's “protectors” as they interpret it differently. However, Trump said it otherwise and this was taken as an opportunity by Harris as she paired these statements with Trump’s anti-abortion statement and said: “Trump simply does not respect the freedom of women or the intelligence of women to make decisions about their own lives.”

‘Understanding the divide’

In North Carolina on Wednesday, Trump received applause on whether women wanted him to protect them, which pleased him a little but he knows it’s not enough. Overall, women are not responding to the former president's attempt to reach them.

The latest  ABC News/Ipsos national poll showed Trump is behind Harris among expected female voters by 14 points – an edge that far outpaces his 6-point lead among men.

Adding to Trump’s challenges the gender gap in early voting in the most intense seven key states, women have cast 55% of ballots so far, while men account for 45%.

“Early vote has been disproportionately female,” Charlie Kirk, president of Turning Point Action, a conservative group in charge of much of Trump’s ground strategy, posted on X. “If men stay at home, Kamala is president. It’s that simple.”

In a statement to CNN, Trump campaign spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said “Harris may be the first woman Vice President but she has implemented dangerously liberal policies that have left women worse off financially and far less safe than we were four years ago under President Trump.”

“Women deserve a President who will secure our nation’s borders, remove violent criminals from our neighborhoods, and build an economy that helps our families thrive – and that’s exactly what President Trump will do,” Leavitt said.

Trump’s appearance at the show “Call Her Daddy” might not be enough to solve the longstanding issues with female voters but his decision of not facing them has left a prominent opening for Harris.