First woman president

Harris could become the first woman president. But she didn’t say that in her speech.

Delegates wore suffragette white; Harris’ suit was deep navy blue.

Mia McCarthy

If Kamala Harris is elected this November, she will become the first woman president of the United States.

It was a key detail she left out of her acceptance speech Thursday.

Harris discussed foreign policy, fighting for the middle class — and of course, her contrasts with Donald Trump. But she didn’t explicitly say that she could become the first woman president, not to mention first Black woman president or Southeast Asian American woman president.

Delegates wore suffragette white; Harris’ suit was deep navy blue. The lack of fanfare over a potential first woman president is a dramatic shift from 2016, when breaking the glass ceiling was at the forefront of Hillary Clinton’s nomination.

But even if she never said the words, Harris’ womanhood was woven deeply into the story she told about herself in other ways: She talked about being a prosecutor who “stood up for women and children against predators who abused them” and emphasized the need to implement affordable child care, bashing Project 2025 for its goals of gutting funding for the Department of Education and Head Start.

The vice president spoke extensively about her late mother, who died in 2009, and the lessons she learned from her. She described her mom as a “brilliant five-foot tall brown woman with an accent” and a “tough, courageous” person who dreamed of curing breast cancer.

“I miss her every day,” Harris said. “And especially right now.”

And, like other Democratic speakers throughout the week, she passionately spoke about protecting abortion rights.

“[Trump] plans to create a national anti-abortion coordinator and force states to report on women’s miscarriages and abortions,” Harris said. “One must ask: Why exactly is it that they don’t trust women?”

“Well, we trust women,” Harris said, pointing to herself. “We trust women.”

Harris’ closing message was subtle — inviting everyone to join in on the “next great chapter.”

“Let’s get out there. Let’s vote for it,” Harris said. “Together, let us write the next great chapter in the most extraordinary story ever told.”