Professor McDaniel: Presidential Candidate Kamala Harris Has Across-Aisle Appeal

USA TODAY -- Critically for Harris’s presidential bid, which soon will test her across-the-aisle appeal, San Francisco demands that its politicians develop both a thick skin as well as deft political instincts, says Jason McDaniel, associate professor of Political Science at San Francisco State University. “If you can get elected here, it is a product of your talent because it means you’ve succeeded in winning over the support of a wide range of people concerned about a wide range of issues,” he says. McDaniel says broad coalition building is a hallmark of successful Bay Area politicians, as is the ability to connect directly with voters. “If she can do well in Iowa, she’ll be formidable,” he says. “In San Francisco and later in California more broadly, she showed she has the ability to appeal to both a multiracial group but also, though her prosecutorial experience, with those who are look for that strength of character. She’s the real deal.”