at Howard University, Democratic activists from hope to disappointment

The announcement came like a hammer. “You will not hear from the vice president tonight,” said Cedric Richmond, advisor to the Democratic campaign, who took the stage to signal the end of the evening. The music, and the tenuous hope maintained throughout the night, stopped dead on the campus of Howard University, in Washington, where the Democratic camp had organized its election night.

Like a single being, tens of thousands of people held their breath at the announcement of the smallest county that could drape itself in the colors of their candidate, Kamala Harris. New York, Maryland, Connecticut, California… With each victory, cries of joy erupted, even if the result was a foregone conclusion in these largely Democratic states.

The crowd dressed in blue, the color of the Democratic Party, had gathered on the central esplanade of the university, their faces tense, turned towards the stage where the results of the election were broadcast live on the CNN channel. Behind them, the historic white bell tower overlooked the activists who had come to wait, and hope, together.

Kamala Harris had chosen Howard, her former university, from which she graduated in 1986, to spend the most decisive night of her career. The Democratic candidate has maintained a very strong link with her alma mater, which she regularly mentions in her speeches as a place which gave her the means to achieve her ambition. Because Howard is the most famous of the hundred “historically black universities” (historically Black colleges and universitiesHBCU) that exist in the country. Nicknamed the “black Harvard,” it has trained the country’s African-American elite since its creation in 1867.

“People can’t take the negativity anymore”

There were many students and former students this evening, moved to find themselves there. “It makes me nostalgic to be able to come back to this campus and witness history,” confides Kristell Knight, 40, her eyes full of memories. A tear drops but does not flow: “I won't cry until the final result. » In the middle of the evening, she still wants to keep the hope that Kamala Harris will become “the first black woman president of the United States” despite the difficulties that the candidate encounters in the swing statesthese states which swing the election.

As the evening progresses, the hope and joy of being reunited barely dominate the nervousness of waiting for the final results. The estimates and tallies which give, throughout the evening, an advantage to the Republican camp contradict the enthusiasm which marked this campaign. It was very short on the Democratic side, with Kamala Harris entering the running only in July, after the withdrawal of the outgoing president, Joe Biden, from the race. For Natasha Walker, t-shirt and cap bearing the image of the candidate, it is still time for a party, to celebrate the work accomplished during these last very intense months. “I went door to door every weekend and helped organize the votes, people can't take the negativity anymore, so I still feel very happy,” she smiled.

You have 38.8% of this article left to read. The rest is reserved for subscribers.