What The Election Tells Us About The State Of Feminism In America

Modern feminism could have had a big moment during the 2024 election. After all, Kamala Harris has had a lot of big jobs and winning would have given her the biggest one of all.

Americans have rejected both women put up for president recently by Democrats and supported by modern feminists. This headline sums up the state of affairs well: America, again, chooses Trump over a woman.

The condescending last-ditch efforts to win over women voters, failed messaging, and feminist response to Harris’s loss show that modern feminism is missing the mark.

Modern feminists have a woman problem. The far Left has captured feminism but not the hearts of American women.

The Condescending Julia Roberts Ad Infantilized Conservative Women

Less than two weeks before the election, Hollywood star Julia Roberts narrated a pro-Harris ad showing a wife privately voting for Harris while her husband waits at the exit. Roberts reminded women that, “You can vote any way you want, and no one will ever know. Remember what happens in the booth, stays in the booth.”

Americans, including women, know that voting is done in secret. Instead of sharing new information, this ad promoted the idea that women who don’t vote for Harris do so solely because they are controlled by their husbands. It has no appreciation for women being thoughtful and able to come to their own decision when it comes to picking a candidate. This is anti-feminist.

Modern feminists need to learn that American women don’t want condescending ads, but instead a candidate who offers a vision to help them build better lives.

Women Are Looking for Leadership on Issues

Just being a female candidate wasn’t enough to win over women voters.

Endorsements from stars such as Taylor Swift, Oprah Winfrey, and Katy Perry weren’t enough either. And appearing on the Call Her Daddy podcast didn’t seal the deal.

Harris actually did worse with women than Biden. Harris won 53% of women, while Biden won 57% of women.

And among those women voters, Trump won a majority of married women, 51%, with Harris only winning 48%. The Julia Roberts ad didn’t work. Harris, however, did win 59% of unmarried women.

Many on the Left thought Harris would win in part due to support from women as a result of Dobbs. For both women and men, the top issue, according to CNN exit polls, for Harris supporters was democracy, followed by abortion. The top issue for Trump voters was immigration, followed by the economy. Women care about and vote on a variety of issues, just like men.

Women vote for the candidate and policies that they believe will lead to a better America and better opportunities for themselves and their families. 

Most Women Want To Get Married and Have Children

To say some women have not taken Harris’s loss well is an understatement. To protest the election, some American women are now very publicly following the tenants of South Korea’s 4B movement, rejecting dating, marriage, sex, and childbirth. Others are shaving their hair off on social media to protest Trump’s win. One such woman said, “F*ck being skinny, f*ck being hot, f*ck being all the things that the patriarchy wants us to be.” One TikToker went so far as to share her plan to help conservative married women see the light, “I’m going to seduce your husband.”

But American women don’t dream of a future of being single and childless. Among adults ages 18-34, 69% of those who have never been married want to get married and 51% who are not parents want to have children. According to an Institute for Family Studies/YouGov survey, among women under 35, only 14% don’t want to have children, and 71% either have children or say they want to have children.

Modern feminism is out of touch when it comes to what women want, especially related to marriage and children.

Modern feminists need to do some self-reflection. They need to go deeper than this November 7 Glamour magazine article headlined, "Thank You, Kamala Harris," that claims Harris “ran a flawless campaign despite all the odds stacked against her.” Her campaign clearly had flaws.

And modern feminism shouldn’t focus on icing out Trump voters. For example, Harris supporters have started the Blue Bracelet movement, for which they wear a blue bracelet to show the world that they voted for Harris. In a viral video that sparked the movement, a mom posted, “I don’t trust any of these b*tches anymore,” referring to Trump voters.

Women who want to be part of a woman’s movement should turn away from the Leftist feminism of today and look for a version of feminism that is actually empowering, such as Opportunity Feminism. Opportunity Feminism advocates for policies that maximize freedom so women can build and organize their lives as they see fit. Modern feminism should pivot toward this direction. Modern feminism has failed women. Women need something new.