The political video reminded women that they can vote for Vice President Kamala Harris without telling their husbands, angering prominent conservatives, and reigniting the fiery discourse that highlighted the central role of gender in this year’s election.
Videowhich began circulating last week, opens with a woman about to follow her husband into a polling booth nervously looking at him before making a choice. She locked eyes with another woman filling out ballots for Harris.
Actor Julia Roberts pointed to the ongoing partisan battle over reproductive rights, saying, “In America, where women still have the right to choose, you can vote any way you want and no one will know.”
The women then leave the polling booth to meet their husbands who voted for former President Donald Trump.
“Did you make the right choice?” one of the husbands asks.
“Of course, baby,” his wife replies with a smile, sharing a knowing look with the woman next to her.
Although there is Harris he avoided talking about it too much The video highlights the potential of becoming the first female president widened gender gap between him and Trump recent inquiries shows remarkable leaders by Harris among women and Trump among men.
Harris’ opponents used her gender throughout her campaign to cast doubt on her qualifications. Trump said in July that world leaders would look to Harris.like a toy” based on his appearance and his allies suggested that Harris had political success can relate to diversity, equity and inclusion policies.
Meanwhile, Trump’s campaign embraced traditional masculinity by actively recruiting influencers and comedians popular with young people.
Gender is also central to many important issues driving voter choices this election cycle, including abortion, in vitro fertilization, child care and transgender rights.
The campaign spot, created by a nonprofit progressive group that works to mobilize religious voters, drew the ire of Trump and some of his allies.
While the organization never paid to promote or broadcast the video, its executive director, Doug Pagitt, said the attention it gained online meant it became an experience familiar to many households.
“So many people in the world I came from, and the subsequent political world surrounding it, believe that women’s primary responsibility in voting is not to have a voice,” says Pagitt, a pastor and social activist. “It’s repeating what her husband told them.”
a Phone interview with Fox News on Saturday, Trump said he was “very disappointed in Julia Roberts” and would one day watch the ad again and be “pissed off.” He added that he did not believe the video reflected real marital dynamics and called it “ridiculous.”
“I mean, can you imagine a wife not telling her husband who she voted for?” Trump said. “Even if you’re horrible, if you’re having a bad relationship, you’re going to tell your husband.”
Fox News anchor Jesse Watters said on air last week that if his wife did the same thing as the women in the ad, it would destroy the “sanctity of our marriage.”
“If I know Emma walks into the voting booth and Harris pulls the lever, that’s the same as having a relationship,” Watters said, prompting many to vote online. call him for In 2018, he admitted to having a marital affair.
Conservative podcast host Charlie Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA, called the ad “sickening.” she criticized his wife for lying: “Sweet husband who probably worked his tail off to make sure he could go and have a nice life and provide for his family.”
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, R-Ga., joined the criticism Thursday. Speaking to Fox News democrat wives are told to lie to their husbands: “What kind of totally immoral, corrupt, sick system have the democrats developed?”
While some conservative men expressed disbelief and disapproval, many online contributed to the discussion by sharing their opinions. experience with women WHO secretly supports the Democrats Republicans say they fear for the welfare of women in the House whose husbands insist control or monitor their voices.
In recent months, sticky notes have also appeared surreptitiously in public bathrooms and tampon boxes, reminding women that no one can see if they voted for Harris.
A few women have been involved in mass campaigning in more conservative areas This was reported by NBC News joining the sticky note campaign was a way of political activism without facing backlash from the Republican-dominated areas where they lived.
Controversy over the ad has prompted some online to draw parallels to Margaret Atwood’s classic novel The Handmaid’s Tale, which depicts a dystopian theocratic regime that forcibly categorizes women and deprives them of personal autonomy. Following the conversation, Atwood shared a political cartoon women entering the voting booth dressed as maids and shedding their red uniforms as they exited.
According to Pagitt, angry responses from some men online reinforce the need for the video’s message.
“They took the sanctity of a person on the ballot and turned it into a conversation about men having the behavior of women in their lives,” Pagitt said. “And I didn’t think you’d speak up for us. We are very grateful that you did.”