Pantsuits and Pearls: Kamala Harris’s Style
Pantsuits and Pearls: Kamala Harris’s Style
So many thoughts on the vice president’s fashion with author Hitha Palepu.
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Hello! We are back from vacation and, like so many of you, I am feeling energized by the presidential election. Vice President Kamala Harris is now at the top of the Democratic ticket; this week, she selected Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate.
Watching this campaign take shape, my eye goes to the visuals — from Brat green to camo hats, even the strikingly minimal Harris/Walz logo. I have so many thoughts on how this ticket is showing up. My plan is to explore all of this and more here on Substack and over on Instagram as the election nears. (And yes, I will SMT along the way. My thumbs are rested and ready!)
But first, fashion. I wanted to put together a primer on Harris’s style to serve as a foundation as we watch the campaign, and the clothing, materialize. As I was writing, I couldn’t help but notice Harris employs many of the same sartorial strategies we talk about with royal fashion. The first female vice president has put together a working wardrobe of similar silhouettes and accessories to build a very consistent visual brand. Harris has also shown a willingness to lean in when the occasion arises, using her outfits to boost her public profile every now and then — or just to have some fun.
To explore this more, I reached out to
, author of the 2021 book We’re Speaking: The Life Lessons of Kamala Harris. It’s a fantastic read, now out in paperback, weaving together Harris’s biography with Palepu’s own multi-hyphenate story. Below, Hitha and I dive into the vice president’s style, rewinding to her time on the 2020 campaign trail before examining the last four years and the subtle changes we are now seeing in the earliest days of her presidential bid. The conversation takes what is obvious on the surface — lots of pantsuits and pearls — and adds a layer of context and nuance. What is behind the shift in suit colors? What do those pearls mean? Read on for answers, plus why those Converse were so important and Hitha’s convention predictions.🎉 GIVEAWAY: Hitha has generously offered to give away *10* paperback copies of her book, We’re Speaking. To enter, click below and leave a comment on this newsletter. I will select the winners at random on Monday, Aug. 12 at noon PT and be in touch via email.
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So Many Thoughts on Kamala Harris’s Style
Before we begin, a gentle reminder that what someone says and does, especially a person in a position of power, is always more important than what they are wearing. Also, I want to recognize that the burden of presentation — the time, effort, and resources it takes to get ready — is disproportionately placed on women. All too often, someone’s appearance is unfairly scrutinized and/or a source of criticism. However, it also presents an opportunity to garner attention or amplify someone’s time in the spotlight.
Please note: This interview has been edited and condensed.
Let’s start with the 2020 campaign, including the primary when Kamala Harris was running for president and then when she joined Joe Biden as his vice presidential pick. How would you describe her style then and what do you think of her approach?
Hitha Palepu: What you saw was a more subdued professional style. It really was consistent from her days as district attorney, with dark neutral suits and a silk blouse. On occasion, she would wear a brighter top, in a jewel tone, to add color. She wore the same simple but classic jewelry, with pearls being a big part of the wardrobe.
In a crowded primary — and this is consistent with how she campaigned and governed — she likes her words and her actions to speak for herself. She is focused on being polished and professional, not necessarily making a style statement.
I think of the politicking and the scrutiny that is placed on Black women in this country. [Harris] was damned if she did, damned if she didn’t in making a stronger style statement. She defaulted to what she had been comfortable in for her entire political life. Should she have taken a bolder move when it came to her style as a nominee, that would have become a storyline that would have lost the plot on what she stood for politically. I think she threaded that needle perfectly.
She got a lot of attention during that campaign for wearing Converse sneakers. What do you think those shoes did for her public image?
It gave her more of a sense of approachability. That’s why the more casual campaign appearances after she became the nominee went viral, like her running down the stairs of her plane.
When you think about that vice presidential run, the most powerful style moments in my mind are the casual ones, like her holding an umbrella and dancing in the rain or the “We did it, Joe!” in leggings and a pullover. Every woman has a version of that outfit. That relatability is incredibly powerful in how it connected us to her. It brought a needed injection of enthusiasm into that ticket. And it was a factor in making us feel good about who we were electing, not just as politicians but as people.
How would you describe Harris’s style as vice president?
It was fun to see her step it up a bit with that all-white suit when the election was called. That felt like a nod to Secretary [Hillary] Clinton, the kind of style she embodied, and a nice continuation of the sentiment: I might be the first, I won’t be the last.
As vice president, Harris started to push the boundaries a bit, to step into the spotlight and claim it a bit more with her style. It has still been a very safe and comfortable silhouette of pantsuits. It is still muted, still fairly neutral, but dipping into dark crimsons, aubergines, sometimes even a coral. It has been really fun to see her expand that color palette. She is already going to attract attention [as the first female vice president] and now she is owning it a bit more with her style. She is also not afraid of re-wearing head-to-toe looks.
Yes! She repeats all the time. What have you made of Harris’s bolder fashion moments?
She is keeping it joyful. I think of what she wore to Beyoncé, the white pants and the sequin shirt. It reminded me a lot of her rainbow rhinestone Pride jacket that she wore as senator. That was one of my favorite looks on her. Not only was it bold, and a nod to what she had done for LGBTQ+ rights as attorney general, but she also looked so comfortable. When you choose to wear something outside of your norm, your go-to uniform, there can be the risk that the outfit wears you. But she was so comfortable in that.
I also think about the concert she held at the vice president’s residence last year [marking the 50th anniversary of hip-hop] where she wore hot pink pants and this incredibly bold, patterned blouse. She was vibing and dancing and having the best time. It was one of the first times in the administration that I saw them letting Kamala be Kamala and it was amazing. This is someone who embraces standing out a bit more and uses it as an opportunity to say: Your attention is already on me. Let me grab it a bit more.
When she does step it up or deviate a bit from her uniform, the other parts of her look — her hair, makeup, and accessories — often are consistent. When you think about how a Black woman’s makeup is scrutinized, her hair is politicized and scrutinized, changing that would be way more risky than playing around with style. So I think that is also incredibly intentional.
And, as you say, her accessories are consistent, too. When I think of her jewelry, pearls come to mind.
Pearls have significance in both of her identities. Pearl necklaces are a big part of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority, so it certainly is a nod to that part of her life, her experience at Howard University, her membership in AKA and that sisterhood.
Pearls are also very frequently worn among South Indian women. I know the city I am from, Hyderabad, is known as the City of Pearls. How Indians wear pearls are a little bit different and I have seen similarities between Indian jewelry designs and some of Irene Neuwirth’s pieces [worn by Harris], how she sets them with gold and on a longer chain versus a classic string of pearls.
I view it as her giving a nod to both parts of her identities and owning her familial story. It reminds me of something her mother said that I wrote about in the book: Kamala, don’t let people tell you who you are. You tell them who you are.
We are still in the early days of her presidential campaign, but what do you make of Harris’s style thus far?
The light blue suit in Atlanta was so smart. Obviously, blue is the color for the Democratic party. But that pale shade, that baby blue, feels like a rebirth. That suit is very similar to the one, or it could be the same one, she wore on the digital Vogue cover. It’s also the same color suit she wore when meeting with the First Lady of Ukraine, a country under attack. To wear that suit again at the rally — what that suit has meant to her and how she has been seen on the world and cultural stages — that was an intentional choice.
I also see her playing around with lighter colors. She so often has worn suits and blouses that are darker or more muted, a bit more conservative. Seeing her wear more creams and champagne now feels fresh. It is slightly different. You have to be really studying her fashion to notice it. So those who know know and those who don’t just see this consistent strong style that doesn’t distract from a message or the person or the importance of the office. That’s a really fine line that she has walked incredibly well.
She also wore a tan suit recently. Which I thought was so fun, because it felt like a callback to Barack Obama’s viral tan suit moment. There was a moment when Joe Biden himself wore a tan suit and it kind of captured that attention. She looked far more natural wearing it than either of them ever did. [Laughs] It made you feel like she is in on the joke and, when it comes to the attention on her style, she will have fun with it in these micro moments.
Thinking ahead, do you have any predictions for what Harris might wear to the convention? She has done a wonderful job of sharing her spotlight with young designers of color, including Christopher John Rogers and Prabal Gurung.
I have a feeling those two have high likelihoods at the convention, either for her speech moments where she is on stage, like after Tim Walz’s speech. It makes me think about royal style — these duchesses and princesses have their go-to designers for a reason. They built a long-term relationship with them. They feel comfortable in their clothes. The designers likely already have their measurements. I can’t imagine Harris is going to have time to go to fittings.
I would also love to see Aurora James. Her personal advocacy work with the 15 Percent Pledge and her strong design outside of Brother Vellies, like dressing AOC at the Met Gala, could make for a really powerful moment.
My thanks to
! You can find her on Substack and follow her on Instagram at @HithaPalepu. Pick up a copy of her book, We’re Speaking, on Amazon, Bookshop.org, Barnes & Noble or wherever you get your books. Click below and comment to enter to win one of 10 copies; giveaway closes Monday, Aug. 12 at noon PT.PS: If you have thoughts on visual aspects of the campaign you would like me to explore, or people you think would make for interesting interviews, please send me an email: Hello@SoManyThoughts.com.
Can I just say I'm excited to see what she wears on inauguration day and that night? I know I maybe getting a tad bit ahead of myself. But I am genuinely excited and relieved for our future.
Love this!! Thank you for covering Kamala’s style. 100% what she says and does is most important, but there’s so much that can be subtly said through clothes. I know you will carefully and respectfully discuss her style and I appreciate that!