Following weeks of speculation and turmoil, President Biden announced this weekend (July 21) that he is withdrawing from the 2024 race. Biden endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to head up the party’s ticket, a move that was quickly followed by a surge of public support from hundreds of Democratic lawmakers, as well as numerous governors once thought to be potential Harris rivals for the nomination.
The Gazette spoke with Danielle Allen – James Bryant Conant University Professor at Harvard and director of the Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation at Harvard Kennedy School – about the political moment we’re in and what it tells us about the health of American democracy.
She said: “I think probably if we really zoom out from a broad historical perspective, then what matters is that this is a time of incredible social, economic, and political transformation in the world. In that context, pre-existing governance patterns will come under strain, and that strain will force change. And that’s basically what we’re watching. We’re watching both parties try to cross a bridge from the political-economic world that defined the ’90s and early 2000s to a political-economic world that has been dramatically reorganized by tech.”
Read the full article in the Harvard Gazette here.
Danielle is a professor of political philosophy, ethics, and public policy. She is also a seasoned nonprofit leader, democracy advocate, tech ethicist, distinguished author, and mom. Her work to make the world better for young people has taken her from teaching college and leading a $60 million university division to driving change at the helm of a $6 billion foundation, writing as a national opinion columnist, advocating for cannabis legalization, public health policy, democracy renovation, civic education, and sound governance of and with new technology.