Video Calls Mobilize Support for Harris Amid Biden’s Withdrawal
On the night of July 25, 2024, over 160,000 people participated in a Zoom call to rally support for Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris, focusing on white women—a crucial voter demographic that has previously supported Republican nominee Donald Trump. The call, organized by Shannon Watts, founder of Moms Demand Action, aimed to galvanize support for Harris in the wake of President Joe Biden’s announcement on July 21 that he would step aside from the 2024 race.
The event included a diverse group of participants, such as activists, podcasters, singer Pink, and ordinary voters who expressed regret for not doing enough in the lead-up to the 2016 election, which resulted in Trump’s victory. This call was part of a larger effort to mobilize different demographic groups, with similar video calls already held for Black women, Black men, South Asian women, LGBTQ allies, and white men.
Watts emphasized the importance of using both economic and political power to support Harris, pointing out that white women had often failed to back Democratic candidates in the past. In the 2016 and 2020 elections, a significant portion of white women voted for Trump, a trend that Democrats aim to change by appealing to their concerns, particularly in light of the Republican push for abortion bans following the 2020 Supreme Court decision that overturned Roe v. Wade.
Trump’s campaign, however, is shifting its focus toward Harris, aiming to connect her policies with Biden’s administration and address issues such as immigration at the U.S.-Mexico border. Despite this, the turnout for a “White Men Against MAGA” call earlier in the week was notably low, attracting only around 1,000 participants, signaling challenges in mobilizing some left-leaning voters.
