Kamala Harris’ presidential election loss dampens mood at Howard, but pride remains

WASHINGTON, D.C. –  In front of a somber crowd at Howard University on Wednesday, Vice President Kamala Harris implored her supporters to stay engaged despite their disappointment over her loss in the presidential election.

“The outcome of this election is not what we wanted, not what we fought for, not what we voted for,” Harris said during her concession speech, her first public remarks since The Associated Press called the race for former President Donald Trump early Wednesday morning. “But hear me when I say the light of America’s promise will always burn bright as long as we never give up and as long as we keep fighting.”

Many in the crowd said Harris’ presence at her alma mater was a balm after a hard election night. 

“It definitely has been very difficult as I’ve been going around on campus today,” said Howard junior Hamid Jalloh, a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. “It’s definitely been a mix of emotions, but at the same time we can’t be anything besides proud.”

Howard junior Selma Apara said she hopes America heeds Harris’ call to action. 

“One of the biggest things [Harris] said was to organize and mobilize, and that’s the biggest thing that we need right now. We need people to come together and take care of each other,” Apara said. “There’s this big individualism mindset in this country, in our society as a whole. … It’s very important for people to take this opportunity and this momentum where everyone’s fired up and having these strong emotions to organize and put them towards something.

“We can’t move in a backwards direction. We have to keep moving forward.”

Howard senior Brian Rogers said when he heard the election results, he immediately called his grandmother and other elder relatives to check on them. He said Harris’ speech was motivational but also “a little bittersweet just because we won’t see the first Black woman president today.”

“I’m concerned about the Black folks who don’t have a strong community,” Rogers said. “While it might not be a fun time, I think that we’ll be alright. We done seen a lot. Our parents have been through a lot. Our grandparents [have] been through a lot, their parents even more. So I think that the spirit that we have cultivated over these generations of resistance, organization and just strengthening ourselves through our community is what’s gonna get us through it.”

Mya Mckinley, a Howard senior and — like Harris — a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., said she has big hopes for the vice president’s political future.

“She really just showed us that the impossible is possible. She just did so much in the short amount of time that she was given to run this campaign,” Mckinley said. “I think we’re all proud of her, all of the Black women on this campus. We stand beside her, and I know that this isn’t the last that we’ll see of her. 

“I can’t wait to see what more she does for us, our people [and] this country. I know the next four years feel kind of scary, but listening to her speak tonight made me feel so much better about what there is to come.”

The atmosphere during Harris’ speech stood in stark contrast to the upbeat mood that permeated the campus for much of Tuesday night, when thousands of enthusiastic supporters flocked to the historically Black university for a campaign watch party, hoping it would become a coronation of the first Black woman elected president of the United States.

During the election night gathering, a DJ played music as pink-and-green clad members of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. strolled among a sea of Howard students and alumni, all there to support one of their own. Harris pledged Alpha Kappa Alpha at Howard in 1986.

However, as each hour passed with poll results signaling a significantly steeper road to victory for Harris, the mood grew more somber. By just before 1 a.m., when Harris campaign co-chair Cedrick Richmond told attendees she wouldn’t be speaking until later Wednesday, the crowd had thinned considerably.

Howard junior Ka’Darius McNair said this is the first presidential election he was eligible to vote in, so when he heard Harris was hosting a campaign event on campus he had hopes of witnessing history.

“She could have stayed at the White House. She could have had her reception somewhere else, but for her to come back to Howard, to her stomping grounds, where she went to a long time ago, that speaks volumes to this school, the culture, the heritage and the legacy that she’s leaving here for Howard students,” he said.