Joe Biden’s “stupidity and selfishness” cost Kamala Harris the election, a major Democratic donor has said, as the party begins a blame game over its devastating election loss.
Senior party officials and donors have cited Ms Harris’ closeness to President Joe Biden and Mr Biden not dropping out of the presidential race against Donald Trump earlier as key factors in her defeat.
Ms Harris failed to win over core Democratic constituencies of young, black, and Latino voters and make gains with college-educated suburban voters, while Trump mobilised his base and made gains with Hispanic voters.
Whitney Tilson, a Wall Street investor and long-time Democratic donor, told the Telegraph: “Off the top of my head, here’s how I’m allocating the blame.
“Fifty per cent on Biden for stupidly and selfishly deciding to run again and then not withdrawing earlier.”
Mr Biden withdrew from the race in favour of Ms Harris in July, just weeks from the November polling day, after a disastrous debate performance against Trump highlighted concerns about the 81-year-old’s health.
Democratic donors have accused Mr Biden’s inner circle of attempting to “conceal” the true nature of his health.
One Democratic donor told Reuters: "Why did Joe Biden hold on for as long as he did? He should have not concealed his (health) and dropped out a lot sooner."
A party official said it amounted to “malpractice” by Mr Biden’s closest aides, saying they should have persuaded him to not try and seek a second term.
“No one would tell him 'no'," the official said. "So it's Joe, but also Joe's core apparatus. Stunning and well documented chickens coming home to roost."
The party "needs a complete reboot," hedge fund manager Bill Ackman, a longtime Democratic donor who endorsed Trump in 2024, added.
"The party lied to the American people about the cognitive health and fitness of the president," he said.
A Harris aide said her campaign had been doomed by its close association with Mr Biden’s record in office, which saw high inflation and high immigration - two key priorities for voters.
The aide argued that Harris should have done more to present herself as an agent of change, citing a remark by the Vice President on the ABC show "The View" that she could not think of anything she would have done differently from Mr Biden.
Exit poll data suggests as well as losing support with Latino voters, black voters and voters under 30, Ms Harris also did not manage to secure as much support as she needed among women.
She lost 13 points with Latino voters, two points with black voters, and six points with voters under 30, according to polls, which may change as votes are counted.
Meanwhile, Trump made gains among working-class voters and also increased his support in many suburban areas, where Democrats thought they had made inroads.
Independent Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, who lost the 2016 Democratic presidential primary to Hillary Clinton and the 2020 primary to Mr Biden, said in a statement it was "no great surprise" that working class voters abandoned the party.
"First, it was the white working class, and now it is Latino and black workers as well. While the Democratic leadership defends the status quo, the American people are angry and want change," he said. "And they're right."
Ms Harris has conceded the election, with Trump securing 294 of the required 270 electoral college votes by Thursday morning.
She told a rally at her alma mater Howard University on Wednesday evening: "While I concede this election, I do not concede the fight that fueled this campaign.”
