The US presidential election is fast approaching, with voters set to take to the polls on 5 November.
The big question stands: Will the US get its first female president in Kamala Harris or a second Donald Trump term?
Harris has been narrowly ahead of Trump in the national polling averages since she entered the race at the end of July, but there’s a large gender gap when it comes to support for either candidate. An NBC poll this week found men favour Trump over Harris by 12 points (52 per cent to 40 per cent). Meanwhile, among women, Harris leads Trump by 21 points: 58 per cent to 37 per cent.
Helping to drive support for Harris are some big name women who have been directly or indirectly destablising Trump’s campaign.
Some have thrown their support behind Harris in outspoken ways, while others have undermined his messaging in a more subtle manner. Let’s take a look at who has been making an impact.
Laurene Powell Jobs
US billionaire and philanthropist Laurene Powell Jobs has reportedly been a key player behind Kamala Harris’ rise in the presidential campaign. The pair have been friends for around two decades, and Powell Jobs has long supported Harris’ public profile and provided funds to her campaign.
Widow of Steve Jobs, Powell Jobs inherited his stake in Apple and Disney upon his death. According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, her current net worth is $11.5 billion, making her the wealthiest woman in Silicon Valley.
Powell Jobs has “quietly” given millions of dollars to an organisation backing Harris’ presidential bid, three people in the know of the matter told the New York Times. And Fortune reports that the billionaire worked behind the curtain to push Biden out of the presidential race after his disastrous June debate.
Liz Cheney
Considered the highest-profile Republican to endorse Vice President Harris, Liz Cheney took to the stage Friday morning to join forces in the battleground state of Wisconsin. Cheney made it clear that she has the same campaign goal as Harris: to ensure Trump doesn’t return to the Oval Office.
In a nod to what the GOP looked like before Trump’s MAGA movement took hold, Cheney and Harris both appeared at a historic schoolhouse in the city of Ripon, where abolitionists in 1854 created what became the Republican Party.
Walking on stage to the sound of Taylor Swift’s Change, Cheney referenced putting country over politics when she said she supports Harris: “We may disagree on some things, but we are bound together by the one thing that matters to us as Americans more than any other– and that’s our duty to our Constitution.”
Cheney voted to impeach Trump in 2021, and she co-chaired the House committee that investigated Trump’s role in the January 6 attack on the US Capitol, recommending charges against him.
Melania Trump
Melania Trump has potentially destabilised Trump’s campaign in a more roundabout manner– through her new public support for abortion rights.
It’s a crucial election issue ever since Trump appointed a number of Supreme Court Justices who overturned Roe v Wade caused devastating consequences for women’s health in the US.
In a video posted to her X account on Thursday morning, Melania appeared to confirm what had been seen in excerpts of her self-titled memoir— that she believes in women’s “individual freedoms” to do what they want with their bodies.
Having rarely spoken about political issues previously, Melania says in the video: “Individual freedom is a fundamental principle that I safeguard.”
“Without a doubt, there is no room for compromise when it comes to this essential right that all women possess from birth: individual freedom. What does ‘my body, my choice’ really mean?”
While Trump’s campaign hasn’t responded to Melania’s book or video, many are speculating on what her messaging could mean.
Michelle Obama
With her words still ringing strong from last month’s Democratic national convention in Chicago, Michelle Obama’s support of Harris has been powerful.
“Kamala Harris is more than ready for this moment,” Michelle said. “No one has the monopoly on what it means to be an American. No one. Only Kamala Harris truly understands the unseen labour and unwavering commitment that has always made America great.”
Referencing Trump’s platforming of a racist movement that falsely claimed Barack Obama was was ineligible to be president because he was not a natural-born citizen of the United States, she gave a line that’s gone viral:
“Who is going to tell [Trump] that the job that he is seeking might be one of those Black jobs,” she said, to thunderous applause.
Taylor Swift
The fifth most powerful woman in the world, according to Forbes, Taylor’s Swift’s public endorsement of Harris caused a colossal spike in voter registrations.
Less than 24 hours after Swift’s Instagram post, where she revealed her support for Harris and her running mate, Tim Walz, more than 406,000 people had visited the federal voter registration site where American citizens can register to vote.
“I’m voting for @kamalaharris because she fights for the rights and causes I believe need a warrior to champion them,” Swift said.
“I think she is a steady-handed, gifted leader and I believe we can accomplish so much more in this country if we are led by calm and not chaos.”