Beyond the ballot: history in the making

The U.S. elected its 47th president — Donald Trump — less than 24 hours after polling places opened on Election Day. 

For some, the outcome of this election is devastating. 

For others, it’s exactly the desired result. 

In January, Trump will take the reins and find himself face-to-face with a precarious nation. 

For many young voters, such as college students, this election was the first they participated in, and this group played an important role in determining the future of the country.

Partisan beliefs aside, I believe there was a special excitement among young voters, particularly women, to see a woman become president of the United States. Or, at the very least, watch a woman run for office. 

But did this enthusiasm actually drive young female voters to vote for Kamala Harris? 

Before unpacking this question, let’s consider why a female candidate was so important for voters in the first place. 

Certainly, the U.S. has a long history of underrepresenting women in politics, with little progress. 

Today, there are 150 women in Congress. In comparison to the roughly 400 men, this is a fairly low number.

And unlike 87 other countries around the world, there’s never been a woman in the Oval Office. 

If anything, Harris is a glaring example of just how far behind the U.S. is compared to other democracies.

At the same time, most women would agree it’s extraordinarily important for young girls to know that women can and do run for president. In a modern age where women have rights and opportunities, the youth must see that politics is no longer run entirely by men. 

In 2016, Hillary Clinton made history as the first woman to ever run for president. But Harris changed history once more as the first woman of color to do it, which has to count for something.

Although Harris didn’t come out on top, she reinforced the idea that women have just as much ambition and dreams to hold leadership positions as men.

We are, after all, a representative democracy. Women of color have a voice in this country, and some women saw themselves in Harris and rooted for her. 

Harris serves as a reflection of how far this nation has come. Her presidential candidacy sparked hope within voter groups comprised of progressive, female voters. 

Ultimately, it’s not just young women who flocked to support Harris’ candidacy. Plenty of older women also put faith in Harris.

In a 2024 survey taken by the Pew Research Center, Trump supporters reported crime rates and immigration policies as leading issues. Harris supporters focused more on healthcare, abortion, racial and ethnic inequalities, and the Supreme Court. Both parties reported that the economy was a major factor in this election. 

Within my own research and conversations with women in my life, across different ages and backgrounds, I have found that a great deal of them were influenced to vote for Harris because she is a woman. 

However, the majority said they didn’t vote for Harris for that reason alone. They felt her policies had the potential to better the nation by protecting women’s reproductive rights, which was undeniably an intense topic of debate this election season.

Women and people of color are tired of older white men dominating the political sphere. That was made clear as Harris supporters called for change within the government and promoted the image of a female president. 

Many see the future of the nation dangerously poised on a tightrope, balancing between two Americas — one where women’s rights are at risk and female leaders are beaten down, and one where women prosper and command respect. 

I’ve had multiple discussions with other women who acknowledge they want to see a female president, sooner rather than later. 

I can conclude from my own experiences of talking with these women in the past few months that Harris’ gender most definitely had an impact on the outcome of this election. As a woman myself, I have to admit it was a breath of fresh air to watch a woman run for office, even if she didn’t win. 

In the future, there’s no denying younger generations will make their voices heard, and I suspect women’s voices will rise louder than ever before in U.S. history.