INDIANAPOLIS — As Vice President Kamala Harris ramps up her presidential campaign, she spoke to members of historically Black sorority Zeta Phi Beta in Indianapolis on Wednesday, where she highlighted Biden administration wins and worked to shore up support from Black voters — a key voting group in the 2024 election.
“With your support, I am fighting for our nation’s future,” said Harris, who was a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority — another historically Black sorority.
She touted the wins under President Joe Biden such as forgiving student loan debt, working to establish affordable childcare and tackling prescription drug costs.
She mentioned Biden’s address to the nation on Wednesday night — where he will talk about his decision to abandon his reelection bid.
“Tonight, our president will address the nation about his decision to step down as a candidate, and he will talk about not only the work, the extraordinary work that he has accomplished, but about his work in the next six months,” Harris said.
Vice President and Democratic Presidential candidate Kamala Harris delivers keynote speech at Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc.’s Grand Boule event in Indianapolis, Indiana, July 24, 2024.
Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images
Harris also slammed former President Donald Trump over Project 2025, the conservative presidential transition blueprint fronted by the Heritage Foundation.
Zeta Phi Beta, like Harris’s own sorority, is a part of the “Divine Nine” — a collection of nine historically Black fraternities and sororities. Both the Zetas and the AKAs were founded at the vice president’s alma mater of Howard University, a historically Black university.
The significance of this moment for these women is profound. A last-minute organizing fundraising Zoom call Sunday night saw some 44,000 Black women donating nearly $1.6 million, which contributed to a record-breaking $126 million raised since President Joe Biden’s endorsement of Harris for the job, according to a memo the campaign sent outlining its path forward.
“Vice President Harris has well-documented support from the Biden-Harris coalition of voters that delivered victory in 2020,” said campaign chair Jennifer O’Malley Dillon. “She has significant advantages with key parts of the Democratic base: Black voters, Latino voters, AANHPI voters, women, and young voters.”
Black voters are a key group of voters that both Harris and former President Donald Trump will work to connect with as the November election approaches.
During her speech, Harris encouraged the Black attendees to head to the polls to “make history.”
Attendees cheer and clap as Vice President and Democratic Presidential candidate Kamala Harris delivers keynote speech at Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc.’s Grand Boule event in Indianapolis, Indiana, July 24, 2024.
Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images
“When we mobilize, nations change, and when we vote, we make history,” Harris said. “So let us continue to fight with optimism and faith and hope. Because when we fight, we win.”
Trump — as well as then-candidate Biden — have worked to court Black and Hispanic voters on the issues of the economy, education, immigration and more.
Trump has recently attended events at Black Conservative Federation Gala in South Carolina, 180 Church in Michigan and New York City’s South Bronx to court Black voters and announce his “Black Americans for Trump” coalition.
Vice President and Democratic Presidential candidate Kamala Harris delivers keynote speech at Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc.’s Grand Boule event in Indianapolis, Indiana, July 24, 2024.
Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images
Trump has centered his appeal to Black voters by equating his criminal prosecutions to the historic discrimination Black Americans have faced.
The Harris campaign’s push comes at a time when it’s trying to shore up continued interest from a constituency that has historically voted for Democrats.
Harris’ event, which the White House announced in early July — before Biden’s decision to leave the 2024 race, came at a controversial time. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is visiting Washington this week and will be addressing Congress on Wednesday — yet Harris won’t be there. It marks the first time Harris will miss a world leader visit since she has become vice president.
Harris, who in her secondary role to the president, has created some distance from Biden on the war in Gaza. Some pro-Palestinian groups tell ABC News that if she is able to strike the right tone in the coming weeks, she could win back the support Biden had lost.
The vice president is scheduled to meet with Netanyahu on Thursday.
Source Agencies
