INDIANAPOLIS — Vice President Kamala Harris is stepping up her campaign stops, with plans to deliver a speech to one of the nation’s largest historically black sororities in Indianapolis on Wednesday — an event that could boost her support among black voters.
Harris will deliver a keynote address at the Zeta Phi Beta, Inc. sorority Grand Boulé on Wednesday.
Zeta Phi Beta, like Harris’ Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority, is part of the “Divine Nine” — a group of nine historically black fraternities and sororities. The Zetas and AKAs were founded at Howard University, where the vice president attended, a historically black university.
Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris arrives aboard Air Force Two at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, July 24, 2024.
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The significance of this moment for these women is profound. A last-minute fundraising meeting held over Zoom Sunday night saw some 44,000 Black women donate nearly $1.6 million, contributing to a record $126 million raised since President Joe Biden endorsed Harris for the office, according to a memo sent by the campaign outlining the path forward.
“Vice President Harris has the well-documented support of the Biden-Harris coalition of voters that secured victory in 2020,” said campaign manager Jennifer O’Malley Dillon. “She has significant advantages with key segments of the Democratic base: Black voters, Latino voters, AANHPI voters, women and young voters.”
Black voters are a key group of voters that Harris and former President Donald Trump will be working to connect with as the November election approaches.
People hold signs in support of Vice President Kamala Harris as she speaks during a campaign event at West Allis High School in West Allis, Wisconsin, on July 23, 2024.
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Trump — as well as then-candidate Biden — worked to appeal to black and Hispanic voters on issues of the economy, education, immigration and more.
Trump has recently attended events including the Black Conservative Federation gala in South Carolina, Church 180 in Michigan and the South Bronx in New York to court black voters and announce his “Black Americans for Trump” coalition.
Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris speaks at West Allis Central High School during her first campaign rally in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on July 23, 2024.
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Trump focused his appeal to black voters by comparing his criminal prosecutions to the historical discrimination that black Americans have faced.
The Harris campaign’s move comes as it tries to bolster continued interest from an electorate that has historically voted Democratic.
The event, announced by the White House in early July — before Biden decided to drop out of the 2024 race — couldn’t come at a more controversial time. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is visiting Washington this week and will address Congress on Wednesday — but Harris won’t be there. It’s the first time she’s missed a visit from a world leader since becoming vice president.
Harris, who in her secondary role to the president has distanced herself from Biden on the Gaza war, has told ABC News that if she can strike the right tone in the coming weeks, she could win back support Biden has lost.
The vice president is expected to meet Netanyahu – alongside Biden – on Thursday.
