Accused of sexual misconduct and decades-long affairs, blamed for strict abortion restrictions and criticized for sexism, Donald Trump has a woman problem — and Democrats are betting Kamala Harris can use it as a cudgel.
Trump was accused of misogyny by his 2016 Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton — the only woman nominated for the White House by a major party — and faces similar attacks from a vice president who appears increasingly likely to be his second.
Broadening Trump's appeal among women is seen as key to the Republican's electoral success in November, after he won just 42 percent of the female vote on his way to defeat in 2020, against Joe Biden's 57 percent.
Last week at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, there was a concerted effort to smooth over the 78-year-old billionaire's rough edges, and his associates, former and current, were effusive in their praise.
Several women in the family also weighed in, with Kai Trump, his oldest granddaughter, sharing stories of “a normal grandpa” who “gives us candy and soda when our parents aren't looking.”
The praise contrasts with his public persona as an admitted sexual predator who has boasted of groping women and has a reputation for infidelity, having allegedly cheated on his third wife, Melania Trump, with a Playboy model and an adult film star.
'Fat pigs, dogs, lazy people'
Last year, Trump was found liable for a mid-1990s sexual assault on writer E. Jean Carroll (the judge called it “rape”) and ordered to pay $88 million in damages for the attack itself and for defaming her.
During his first primary campaign, he criticized the appearance of his only female Republican rival and suggested that the wife of another opponent — Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas — was ugly.
Then, the “Access Hollywood” footage of him bragging about being able to grab women by their genitals nearly brought his campaign to a swift end.
Years earlier, he had boasted on Howard Stern's show that he had entered beauty pageant dressing rooms with “incredible-looking women” in various states of undress.
Voters were reminded of Trump's controversial remarks during one of the 2015 primary debates, when moderator Megyn Kelly cited his descriptions of women as “fat pigs, bitches, slovenly, disgusting animals.”
He later criticised the questioning, saying Kelly had “blood everywhere”.
Clinton accused Trump of “bullying” her during their debate in October 2016, after a bizarre performance during which he often stood very close behind her, glowering at her.
After winning that election, more than 500 Women's Marches were held across the United States and in dozens of foreign cities.
Trump has denied more than a dozen allegations of sexual misconduct, ranging from groping and harassment to rape. The official position of the Trump White House in 2017 was that all the women were lying.
'Formidable female contender'
He avoided jail time in the Carroll case because it was a civil suit, but incarceration has not been ruled out in his September sentencing for falsifying business records to cover up an affair with adult film star Stormy Daniels.
Trump campaign press secretary Karoline Leavitt told AFP that the media's portrayal of his treatment of women was “completely false,” highlighting his efforts to expand access to paid family leave and child care in his first term.
Meanwhile, reproductive rights have become a hot-button issue in the 2024 election following Trump's appointment of three Supreme Court justices who voted to overturn federal abortion protections.
Harris, in addition to being a former prosecutor who regularly jailed men for fraud and rape, is a prominent advocate for abortion access.
A coalition of 22 progressive and women's groups released a statement calling Harris “the leading voice in the Biden administration for restoring abortion rights, the issue galvanizing voters in both Republican and Democratic states.”
Political strategist Sergio José Gutiérrez says that while Harris might have a hard time with moderate and older women, the 2020 Democratic coalition of suburban women and working mothers could help her get across the line.
“Trump's stronghold remains among small-town voters, older voters and economic conservatives,” said Gutierrez, chief executive of the consulting firm Espora.
“But he has to adapt to the dynamics of competing against a formidable female contender.”
