‘Hope is my main emotion’: At Harris HQ, it’s equal parts watch party and jubilant rally
WASHINGTON, D.C. — After some of the most memorable 15 weeks in presidential campaign history, now it was time to stop — and wait. But also, celebrate.
For Vice President Kamala Harris' campaign, that wait was at Howard University in Washington, D.C. The storied historically Black college is Harris' alma mater, a place she has frequently described as home. And the mood? Equal parts watch party and jubilant Harris rally.
The official campaign watch party was located within the Yard at Howard; students across campus were engaged in their own waiting game, taking in the significance of the moment — the possibility that a woman of color and HBCU grad was this close to winning the presidency.
Students, faculty and D.C.-area locals began to line up on the sidewalk awaiting entrance to the Howard University watch party by mid-afternoon, well in advance of its official 6 p.m. ET start time, an hour before polls started to close on the East Coast. As vendors hawked unofficial campaign merchandise, the energy was equal parts joyful and anxious.
Cherion Worthem, a Howard senior originally from Atlanta, said she was experiencing a host of emotions. "I'm very nervous, but excited — and hope is my main emotion." The significance of the results of this election for women's rights was weighing heavily on her.
By 7:45 p.m., the Yard began to fill with students. As the crowd gathered, a DJ played music and attendees broke out into several of the line dances that are tradition and ritual at HBCUs and among Black Greek organizations. The mood felt celebratory, even in the absence of any actual results.
Worthem, a political science major, said she is hoping for a Harris win "with everything in my being." She said she didn't just vote for Harris because they share an alma mater, but because she's "not only the person with better character, but with better policies and a better plan — not just 'concepts of a plan.'"
Speaking to Zerlina Maxwell on Sirius XM radio Tuesday evening, Harris spoke of her goal to chart a new path forward for America, in both policy and culture.
"I do believe this is one of the most significant elections of our lifetime, and there's a real choice in front of us...about fanning the flames of hate and fear — or do we want to move forward and turn the page on that era and chart a new way forward that's about a new generation of leadership in America?" Harris asked. She then gave details about the core tenets of her "opportunity economy" plan, including a $25,000 down payment assistance program for first-time home buyers, a $6,000 child tax credit, and $20,000 in forgivable loans for startup small businesses.
Harris also spoke passionately about the impact of the overturn of Roe v. Wade on Americans' lives — and the role that her opponent, former President Donald Trump, played in creating this reality on the ground.
"Women have had extraordinary complications with miscarriages and been denied care, have developed sepsis, and only then are receiving care. IVF treatments are at risk. Access to contraception is at risk," Harris said. "So, and we are talking about such a fundamental freedom, which is the freedom of a woman to make decisions about her own body and not have her government tell her what to do."
Ve Wright, a junior journalism major at Howard from Broward County, Florida, was excited for the representation that Harris brings. As an Indian and Black woman herself, the thrill of what it means to see Harris in that position was peaking tonight. For Wright, Tuesday night was also very much about the future of reproductive rights. "We definitely want women to be able to take care of their own health, to take charge of their own health." Seeing a "powerful Black woman" leading this charge only underscored the critical feeling of the moment.
Denise Blackburn, a student who — like Harris — is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority, said election night felt like a "turning of the tide, just looking forward in terms of what we want our country to be and how we want it to represent us. All of us — not just a sliver of the population."
Wrapping up her conversation with Maxwell, Harris stressed this point, too.
"His plan is about grievance. It is about himself," the vice president said of Trump. "This is a moment where we have the ability to bring in a new generation of leadership in America and finally turn the page on all of that noise, frankly, that has been about dividing people. Let's bring people together knowing the vast majority of us have so much more in common than what separates us."
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