Democrats Got a ‘Huge Surprise’ in the Suburbs: ‘It Just Didn’t Work’

Democrats widely expected Kamala Harris to beat Joe Biden’s marks in the suburbs. Instead, she collapsed, upturning what had been a core political conviction of the Trump years.

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David Goldman/AP

From the moment Donald Trump first won the presidency eight years ago, suburban voters have led the political backlash against his contentious brand of politics, shedding their traditional Republican leanings and voting against the GOP in ever-growing numbers. It’s an electoral trend Democrats expected to continue in perpetuity.

And then Tuesday arrived.

In one of the biggest surprises of a gut-punch election for Democrats, Kamala Harris suffered broad and significant setbacks against Trump in suburbs across the country, failing to match — much less exceed — Joe Biden’s 2020 vote totals there.