Following a successful virtual conference call to mobilize black female voters to support Kamala Harris, a similar event for white women was held on Thursday, attracting more than 160,000 people, seemingly breaking the record.
White women will be a key demographic for the Democratic Party to win this election.
Harris would become the first female president of the United States if she wins the Democratic Party in November's election, and the first Black woman and South Asian woman presidential nominee of a major party if she is confirmed at the Democratic National Convention next month. Harris' presidential campaign has been underway quickly since Biden announced his withdrawal from the re-election race last Sunday.
“It’s time to organize a call for white women, just as Black women and men are supporting Vice President Kamala Harris.”
"It's our turn to act, this is what we're going to do, remember this date and time."
A "virtual flyer" calling on white women, most of whom tend to vote Republican, to stand up for Harris was widely circulated on social media. "White Women: Answer the Call" was inspired by a call from black women earlier this week, and a Zoom call with 164,000 white women participated, reportedly setting a world record for the largest Zoom call in history. In less than two hours Thursday night, it raised nearly $2 million for Harris.
The Zoom call, organized by Win With Black Women, a group of black women leaders and organizers, was attended by 44,000 people on Sunday within hours of Biden's decision and raised more than $1.5 million for Harris' primary campaign.
Due to the large number of people, those who were unable to join the conference call watched the meeting through other platforms such as Twitch, Clubhouse and YouTube.
This was just one of many calls hosted by the group, which was founded by strategist Jotaka Eaddy, since its inception in 2020.
On Monday, the "Call with Black Men," a campaign inspired by the "Call with Black Women," also raised more than $1.3 million, with donations from more than 17,000 donors going toward Harris.
Shannon Watts, a prominent gun control activist who organized Thursday's event and which featured guests such as actor Connie Britton, former American soccer star Megan Rapinoe, U.S. Rep. Lizzie Fletcher and musician Pink, wrote on Twitter that the group had raised more than $8.5 million as of Friday afternoon.
In 2016, 52% of eligible white women voted for Donald Trump, a figure that likely helped him win the election when he was running against Hillary Clinton, who was hoping to become the first female president of the United States. In 2020, a majority of white women voted for Trump again.
"White women have voted mostly for Republican candidates since the 2000 presidential election, when they were almost evenly split between Democratic candidate Al Gore and Republican winner George W. Bush," said the Center for the Study of American Women and Politics at Rutgers University.
“In contrast, Black, Latino, and Asian women overwhelmingly supported the Democratic candidate throughout the period for which data by gender and race were available.”
Watts said she hopes history doesn't repeat itself.
“Fellow white women: We can and must fix this, and it starts with mobilizing like black women,” Watts wrote on Instagram before the call, linking to a Substack post she wrote that read in part:“White women voting Republican, even when it doesn’t appear to be in their best interest, is a complex phenomenon influenced by privilege, systemic racism and sexism, religious beliefs, and patriarchy.
"But we are not a monolithic group; our voting patterns often vary by religion, education and marital status, and this diversity makes us not only an important voting group but also an unpredictable one — even small changes in our voting behavior can have a significant impact on election outcomes."
Watts added: "In other words, if we start acting now, we can shift voting momentum and help Black women elect Vice President Harris as president within 100 days."
