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One of the things Joe Biden campaigned on in 2020 was relief for student loans. He tried to do it by Executive Order, but the Supreme Court said: "Nope." Only Congress can reduce or eliminate student debt. Unfortunately for Kamala Harris, many students living with crushing debt don't understand how this works and are blaming Harris for not "doing something." Some of them may decide not to vote for her as a result or not vote at all on the grounds that the parties are equally bad.
Despite the Supreme Court ruling, Biden has been able to use existing programs and shoehorn $175 billion in debt relief in there. Almost 5 million former students have benefited from these programs. They, at least, won't be blaming Harris for not fulfilling Biden's promise. While this is only 11% of the people with student loans, in a close election, every vote could matter.
Below is a graphic that shows how much money has been forgiven (on the left). Each box represents $1 billion. Next comes the debt that Biden's plan would have eliminated had the Supremes not vetoed the idea. But even Biden's plan, which called for up to $20,000 in debt to be relieved per student, would never have covered all student debt, which adds up to $1.6 trillion.
Some people with student loans are being crushed. The link above has a video with some horror stories, like one from a woman who borrowed $34,000 as a student and now owes over $500,000 due to accrued interest. Nevertheless, not all students are like this. Many students found good jobs after graduating and are doing fine paying off their loans.
Harris understands that student debt relief plays well with people who went to college, who are a big part of her base. She has often talked about Biden's successes in this area and promised to try to continue to provide relief, something that only Congress can do in the end. She constantly attacks Donald Trump and the Republicans for opposing debt relief. Of course, if she gets elected, the students with loans are going to expect action, not excuses. (V)