Tuesday night’s first — and possibly only — presidential debate between former president Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris was a must-see event for millions.
With both sides fully aware that voters would size them up as much for their words as their demeanor, each candidate dressed accordingly and conservatively. Vice President Kamala Harris sported a black pantsuit with a white pussy-bow blouse, pearl earrings and heels, for the ABC News-moderated showdown at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. Former president Donald Trump wore a blue suit, white shirt and red tie for the 90-minute debate. The opponents each wore a small American flag pin on their lapels. While many viewers were eager to hear Trump’s and Harris’ views on tariffs, immigration, abortion, the economy, climate change, the Israel-Hamas war and foreign policy, some are always taking a closer look at their attire.
Both candidates were wearing “what is completely familiar to us about their way of dressing,” according to Hazel Clark, a professor of design studies and fashion studies at Parsons School of Design. She described Trump’s look as “the same ol’ playbook” and Harris’ as “on point” for her style, due to the dark suit-white blouse combination being “the most serious and formal choices that she could make.”
An estimated 65 million viewers tuned in for Tuesday’s debate, which was an upswing compared to the 51.27 million people who watched Trump face off against President Joe Biden in a 90-minute debate in June. However, the Trump-Harris debate fell short of the 84.4 million viewers who watched the first of three debates in 2016 between then presidential nominees Trump and Hillary Clinton.
Clark said Harris and Trump were “trying to relay familiarity” and did not wear anything that would have been visually distracting from their messages. “There were no sartorial surprises — so we could focus on what they were saying,” she said.
At last month’s Democratic National Convention, Harris accepted the Democratic party’s nomination for the presidency in a custom navy blue Chloé grain de poudre wool suit with matching trousers and a crepe de chine lavallière blouse that featured tonal pinstripes. The look was designed by Chloé’s creative director Chemena Kamali. For her opening night appearance at the DNC in Chicago, the vice president wore a khaki-colored Chloé pantsuit. Executives at Chloé did not acknowledge media requests inquiring whether Harris had worn the label for the debate.
Vice President Harris is said to be working with the celebrity stylist Leslie Fremar, who includes Charlize Theron among her clients. A spokesperson for Fremar declined comment Wednesday.
While designers and brands can be quick to notify the media or post on social media whenever they have dressed a political figure for a global photo-op, that was not the case after the Harris-Trump debate. With election day less than eight weeks away, perhaps both camps are cognizant of how designer ties could play with working-class voters. As of the fourth quarter of last year, the average national salary in the U.S. was $59,384, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Harris has paired her blazers with jeans for recent campaign stops, whereas Trump seldom wears jeans.
Catherine Leslie, a professor at Kent State University, expects Harris’ style will give renewed energy to a power dressing trend. “This is in alignment with some other current trends that have emphasized more tailored clothing, and suiting with jackets and slacks. Her choice of blouses with bows and other neckline features will further popularize power dressing styles,” she said.
ABC’s moderators appeared to be on board with the power suit trend, with David Muir wearing a blue suit, white shirt and skinny blue tie, and Linsey Davis sporting a gray pin-striped pantsuit and a gray buttoned-up blouse.
ABC’s David Muir and Linsey Davis after the debate at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia.
AFP via Getty Images
Fashion historian Kimberly Chrisman-Campbell said that Harris’ choice of black was the perfect color for the occasion. As for what that signaled to voters, Chrisman-Campbell said, “She didn’t come to play; she projected confidence and command without saying a word. I don’t believe a woman needs to wear pants to do that. But Americans are used to seeing their presidents in pants, and they put her on an equal fashion footing with her opponent. Personally, I saw a little Founding Fathers flair in the white blouse with the lavallière neckline. But, more importantly, the pop of white drew attention to her face, and the collar provided a feminine counterpoint to Trump’s tie.”
Whether Harris’ panache for pantsuits will cause a resurgence is uncertain. Chrisman-Campbell said, “They’ve never really gone away. But her quietly stylish suits might convert some people, who find pantsuits boring or basic.”
Others had taken notice of Harris’ pearl earrings. By Thursday morning, conspiracy theorists floated claims of Harris having worn pearl earrings that were embedded with audible devices. Some on social media alleged that they were similar to Nova’s H1 audio earrings. Several media requests to the Munich-based start-up and its founders were not acknowledged Wednesday. As of last May, Nova had raised nearly $111,000 through a Kickstarter initiative.
Politicians and their spouses are routinely scrutinized and celebrated for their designer choices. On Friday, First Lady Jill Biden showed her allegiance to the designer world in a different way in New York City. FLOTUS was the surprise keynote speaker at the “Fashion for Our Future” march. Organized by Vogue and the CFDA, the get-out-the-vote initiative attracted 1,000 people including Karlie Kloss, Michael Kors, Thom Browne, Tory Burch, Wes Gordon, and Proenza Schouler’s Jack McCullough and Lazaro Hernandez. The first lady wore a black blazer from the European label Zadig & Voltaire that spelled out “Love” on the back in metal studs, and skinny leather pants and gray sneakers.
Although Melania Trump did not make the trip to Philadelphia for the debate, she will have a few of her own media appearances coming up once her memoir “Melania” is released. Skyhorse Publishing will publish the book and Simon & Schuster will release it. A media request to Skyhorse Publishing was unreturned and a Simon & Schuster spokesperson deferred comment to Skyhorse Publishing.