The first half of my summer came with an overwhelming sense of dread.
The future that my television screen projected were two different realities: one of a stagnant America due to a man who couldn’t form coherent sentences, and the other of a violent America run by a man fueled by lies.
Both were terrifying, but I knew in my heart that I would have to settle for the former. After all, elections have always been about selecting the lesser of two evils — and those two evils were always men.
The second half of summer was electric.
The Democratic National Convention was like a party, with thousands of delegates excited for a candidate who pledged to leave America better than she found it. Social media blew up with videos and memes celebrating not only her nomination, but the choosing of her running mate, Tim Walz. People were excited as they packed rallies with the hopes of shaking her hand and listening to her plans for a better nation.
I felt a newfound sense of hope and patriotism coursing through the veins of America. Who knew that the center of this electricity could be a woman?
And get this — the beacon of hope and unyielding force that is Kamala Harris has only just begun.
The prospect of finally having a female president is exhilarating, especially as a woman myself, But the big question is, are men ready for that? Recent polling suggests that this may not be the case.
Following last week’s debate, Harris leads Donald Trump in the polls 49 percent to 46 percent, according to the latest New York Times/Siena College poll. However, there is a prevalent gender divide between those voting for either candidate.
According to a 19th News/SurveyMonkey poll conducted between August 26 to September 4, Harris leads among female voters by 13 points (48% to 35%), while Trump leads among male voters by eight points (47% to 39%). Furthermore, Harris sweeps with support from non-binary voters with a margin of 76 points (83% to 7%).
As delighted as I am that women and non-binary individuals are giving Harris an edge in the polls, I can’t help but wonder about what the majority of male voters who support Trump are thinking. It prompts me to ask myself: Is a strong woman in a position of power really so repulsing? Why do men still think this way about women?
The truth is, voter bias is still incredibly common. According to the most recent World Values survey, 15 percent of respondents from the U.S. agreed that “men make better political leaders than women.”
Perhaps this is because leadership is associated with qualities like decisiveness and strength, ones that are attributed to masculinity. Therefore, it may be hard to envision a woman in power, at least to the caliber of the presidency.
However, my gut was also screaming at me about one thing — toxic masculinity.
Ross K. Baker, a political science professor at Rutgers University, said in an interview with The Hill that a number of men tend to feel that “for every advance women make, men necessarily lose.” Baker also mentioned that this very concept most likely accounted for Harris’s selection of Tim Walz as her running mate. Walz was a logical selection, as he is a former football coach and teacher, which would be appealing to men who are iffy on a White House controlled by a woman.
Toxic masculinity is something that always astounds me because it has a blinding effect. Is having a male convicted felon in office truly a better option than electing a woman who is fit for the job? It’s one thing to not vote for Harris strictly because of policy, but that isn’t applicable to all male voters, and that’s terrifying.
Growing up in a household of women, I witnessed their strength and resilience firsthand. The fact that the strength and resilience of women across the nation is perceived as a threat to the masculinity of a number of men is beyond aggravating. I’ll never quite understand how certain men can’t take women seriously when all the attributes of a great leader are right in front of them.
When I see Kamala Harris, I see the qualities of my own mother and other women in my life: bold, passionate and courageous. She may not check all the boxes on your list, as she doesn’t with mine, but she has a voice worth listening to.
America is moving on to the next chapter.
I’m ready for it, are you?
