My heart breaks as America rejects yet another female president
Democratic presidential nominee and US outgoing Vice President Kamala Harris during a campaign rally in Savannah, Georgia, US on August 29, 2024. She has since lost the seat to Republican candidate Donald Trump.
What you need to know:
- I watch in heartbreak as America rejects another woman president, choosing instead a man with a troubling history over a qualified Kamala Harris.
- This proves that even the world's superpower isn't ready for women leadership.
- The campaign exposed the familiar ugly face of misogyny that women in politics face universally.
- Yet even as this highest glass ceiling remains intact, we must celebrate small wins like our own Huldah Momanyi Hiltsley making history in Minnesota.
This week, I find myself staring at my computer screen, wrestling with emotions that feel deeply personal yet universally shared among women across the globe. The devastating news of Kamala Harris's defeat in the US presidential election weighs heavily on my heart – not just as an editor, but as an African woman who dared to dream.
The US, our self-proclaimed beacon of democracy and progress, has once again shown that it isn't ready for a woman president. For those of us in Kenya, where we have fought tirelessly to see a woman in the highest office, this feels like a setback that echoes far beyond American shores. We have long looked to America as the ‘big sibling’ in the global family, hoping they would blaze the trail for gender equality. Instead, they have reinforced what we have painfully known: the path to power remains thornier for women, regardless of geography.
Ugly face of misogyny
The campaign against Harris laid bare the ugly face of misogyny that women in politics face universally. When a candidate is called "stupid", "lazy", and "weak" – when there are suggestions that world leaders would treat her as a "play toy" – it is not just Harris being attacked. It is every woman who has ever dared to step into a leadership role. These words could have been lifted from any female politician's experience here in Kenya.
What is particularly heart-breaking is seeing how some women themselves have internalised these patriarchal views. The Washington Post reported women voters who claimed they'd support a female president – just not this one. It is a familiar refrain we hear in our own political landscape: "We are ready for a woman leader, just not this woman." Somehow, the hypothetical perfect female candidate never materialises.
When the world's superpower, with all its resources and proclaimed progressive values, chooses a man with a troubling history regarding women, over a highly qualified female candidate, what message does this send to nations still struggling with basic women's rights?
For Kenyan women aspiring to leadership, Harris's campaign offered a glimpse of possibility. Her presence on the ballot, even in defeat, proved that women can compete at the highest levels of power. But her loss also revealed how deeply the barriers entrenched remain. When even American voters, who pride themselves on forward thinking, succumb to gender biases, it highlights the magnitude of our global challenge.
Road to equality
Yet, as a feminist and journalist, I refuse to let this defeat define our future. Each crack in the glass ceiling, even those that don't break through, weakens the structure. Harris's campaign, like Hillary Clinton's before her, has shown another generation of girls what's possible. In Kenya, we must continue our own fight, knowing that each woman who steps forward, regardless of the outcome, paves the way for those who follow.
To my readers who supported a woman’s presidency in the US, let this moment serve not as a discouragement but as a call to action. The road to equality was never meant to be easy, but neither was it meant to be travelled alone. We must continue supporting women in leadership, challenging bias in our own spaces, and refusing to accept the notion that certain roles are beyond our reach.
Yet even in this moment of disappointment, we find reasons to celebrate. In Minnesota, our very own Huldah Momanyi Hiltsley has made history as the first Kenyan-born politician to win a state assembly seat in the United States. Her victory reminds us that progress happens in steps, both large and small, and that the dream of women's leadership is very much alive – even if the highest glass ceiling remains intact for now.
The question isn't whether the world is ready for women leaders – it's whether we're ready to keep fighting until the world catches up with us. From where I sit in Nairobi, watching history unfold across the ocean, I say we have no choice but to persist. The alternative – accepting another century of waiting – is simply not an option.
Let us draw inspiration from both Harris's courage to run and Huldah's triumph, knowing thateach woman who steps forward makes the path a little wider for those who follow.
