Questioning the electability of a candidate who has made a career of supporting women’s lives and fundamental rights in an election largely defined by these issues is irresponsible journalism.
Vice President Kamala Harris has won the necessary support to secure her place at the top of the Democratic ticket. An immediate parade of headlines followed: Is America Ready to Elect a Woman? Can a Black Woman Win?
Why are powerful women so damn unlikeable? Wait, don’t answer. It is a sexist, racist trap. Refuse to fall for the clickbait.
On the right, the attacks on Harris are predictable, with Trump promising to “Willie Horton” her as presidential candidate, as reported by The Bulwark.
In JD Vance as Trump’s vice presidential pick, a new twist to the caricature has emerged: Harris as a “childless cat lady,” “miserable” with her life and with no direct stake in the future of the country. Never mind the irony of Vance zeroing in on reproductive tropes, a rich twist for the party that knows all too well its role in decimating abortion access is its Achilles heel, with zero mentions of it at last week’s convention.
As for Harris, a staunch supporter of reproductive rights, this of course is a massive electoral edge. Poll after poll shows that the majority of Americans disapprove of the Dobbs decision, support abortion and turn out to vote on the issue.
Which is why the persistent doomsday handwringing and headlining from the mainstream news media is doubly frustrating. Posing women’s leadership writ large as an open and unanswered question—and questioning the electability of a candidate who has made a career of supporting women’s lives and fundamental rights in an election largely defined by these issues—is nothing short of irresponsible journalism.
Women’s Leadership Around the World
First, let’s be clear: Women lead politics around the world every single day. According to U.N. Women, there are 27 countries that have a woman serving as head of state and/or government. Latin American countries have had women in executive office since the 1970s; last month, Claudia Sheinbaum was elected president of Mexico by a sweeping majority after beating the other leading (female) candidate.
In the U.S., more than 30 percent of elected state-level executives are women, totaling 99, of whom nearly a quarter are women of color. Women serve as governor in 12 states; Michigan has a trifecta of women at the helm in the roles of governor, attorney general and secretary of state. Twelve states each also have women in the roles of attorney general and secretary of state.
A Swell of Support for Harris
Second, the instantaneous outpouring of energy for Harris as the presidential nominee is not only massive but measurable. Her campaign broke the coffers in a mere 24 hours, raising over $81 million in small donations, a new record. Sixty-two percent of those came from first-time givers. More than 44,000 Black women held a same-day Zoom to get down to mobilization plans, followed by 53,000 Black men committing to the same the next day.
Beyoncé blessed Harris with permission to use her song “Freedom” as a campaign anthem. Charli XCX’s “Kamala is Brat” tweet sent Boomers and Gen X spiraling on the airwaves to decipher what it means to be “brat.” The post picked up tens of millions of impressions across social media and changed the hue of the Harris campaign homepage to the greenest of chartreuse greens.
It has been a rapid, remarkable rally, infusing an immediate burst of optimism and joy in the political process unlike anything I’ve seen before.
… except in the echo chamber of the elite. (I’m looking at you, New York Times.)
Gratefully, The Nation’s Elie Mystal offered just the antidote needed in “Beware The People Who Claim ‘America Isn’t Ready for a Black Woman President’”:
“I don’t know, or care, if America is ‘ready’ to have a Black woman president right now, because America has more than enough time to get itself ready. If you’re not already there, I suggest you download some kind of app ‘What to Expect While Expecting a Black Woman President’ or something. But this is what we’re doing now.”
Simply stated, Black women are electable if we elect them. Period. There’s your headline.
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