It’s no secret that Vice President Kamala Harris and her opponent, former President Donald Trump, have marketed themselves differently to voters. However, one stark difference between the two that is often ignored is their merchandise. Harris is often referred to by her first name by reporters, politicians and the general public. In the 2020 vice presidential debate, moderator Susan Page referred to her as Kamala and not Senator Harris. As the Democratic presidential candidate, Harris has effectively used her first name to differentiate herself from her male opponent.
From her merchandise store selling “Kamala” merch to her TikTok handle “Kamala HQ” and her own jokes about being called “Momala” by her stepkids, Harris is not letting anyone forget her name. While women in politics have often been called by their first names to differentiate themselves from their husbands, like Hillary Clinton and Michelle Obama, Harris does not have a husband in politics nor her husband’s last name. Yet, she is overwhelmingly referred to as Kamala, both by her supporters and her opponents.
While Harris has been vice president for four years now and a senator for four years before that, her first name, Kamala, has repeatedly been mispronounced by Republicans. During the 2024 Republican National Convention, nearly half of the speakers who mentioned her first name mispronounced it. Harris sells a t-shirt that writes out how to pronounce her first name, making fun of the Republicans who can’t say her name. While the t-shirt is playful, by intentionally mispronouncing Harris’ name, Republicans are trying to undermine her political power. Harris’ use of her first name in her branding not only makes it abundantly clear that she is a woman but also a woman of color, and Republicans are taking that as a threat.
As the election approaches quickly, some reporters believe that the 2024 election will have a historically large gender gap. With a Democratic woman and Republican man at the top of the ticket and the recent overturning of Roe v. Wade, this election could have a larger gender gap than we’ve ever seen. In general, women are more likely to vote for Harris, and men are more likely to vote for Trump. With election polling between the two candidates so close, this gender gap could make a difference in the outcome. Harris also has an overwhelming lead in points in women voters compared to Trump’s smaller lead with young male voters.
One of Harris’ strongest points in her campaign is her stance on reproductive freedom. Reproductive rights disproportionately affect women, and speaking from my own perspective, my female peers are much more likely to take reproductive rights seriously and for it to affect our voting compared to our male peers. Harris’ welcoming embrace of her first name in her branding does not let her voters and opponents alike forget that she is a woman and, more importantly, a woman who cares about reproductive health issues.
By using her first name, Harris not only capitalizes on it to sell merchandise but uses it to starkly differentiate herself from her opponent. The treatment of her first name, Kamala, shows how disrespectful her Republican opponents have treated her by refusing to pronounce her name properly and shows how Harris has used her womanhood to her advantage to appeal to female voters — voters who could make the difference in this election. Harris also sets an interesting precedent for female politicians who will come after her. When she became the highest-ranking female politician in the United States’ political history by being elected as vice president in 2021, she now has the power to set the trend for female politicians who will follow in her footsteps. I believe we will see more female politicians capitalizing on their first names in the upcoming years because it not only differentiates them from male politicians but makes them more personable to women voters. In the past, referring to female politicians by their first names was a sign of sexism and being undermined compared to male opponents. However, Harris recognizes the power that her first name has in differentiating her from her male opponents like Trump and even in differentiating her from her former running mate, President Joe Biden. Biden’s unpopularity has been a drag in Harris’ campaign, and finding the balance between differentiating herself from him and not criticizing him has been a struggle. However, the difference between the two in their marketing, such as Harris’ use of her first name, is a subtle strategy.
While Harris’ use of her name has been an effective strategy for appealing to Democratic women voters, it’s unclear if this strategy will be enough to win the race.
Jessica Ritter, FCRH ’25, is an English and film and television double major from Huntington, N.Y.
