On Wednesday, Vice President Pence and Sen. Kamala D. Harris (D-Calif.) faced off on the debate stage at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. Following the yelling match that took place during the first presidential debate, many women across the country watched excitedly as Harris made history as the first Black woman or woman of color to appear on the debate stage in a general presidential election. Susan Page, the Washington bureau chief of USA Today, moderated the event.
In the wake of President Trump’s hospitalization due to the coronavirus, the issue of the pandemic was ubiquitous, with both candidates sitting behind clear, plexiglass dividers. For many women, the pandemic shaped their viewing experience, too, with some connecting with friends and family members via text-messaging groups as the historic debate took place.
We wanted to know what was taking place in those intimate, candid messages — so, ahead of the event, we reached out to women across the country who were willing to share their group texts from the night.
From a group of suburban moms in the Mid-Atlantic to college-aged antiabortion activists, several groups shared their real-time texts with us — reacting to issues such as the Supreme Court vacancy, police reform and climate change. Below, we have charted some of the highlights of the debate, and the texts that came with them.
Meet the group texts:
A group of co-workers living in Texas who are supporting the Biden-Harris ticket.
A group of college-aged antiabortion activists who volunteer with antiabortion organization Students for Life of America.
A group of progressive moms and women living in a suburb of Washington, D.C.
A group of LBGTQ teenagers, ages 16 to 18, living on the West Coast.
A pair of friends, one liberal and the other conservative, who are millennials living in California.
Note: Last names have been redacted to allow participants to express their political views openly without potential repercussion.
Ahead of the debate
From the group of college-aged antiabortion activists:
On Pence vs. Harris’s debating styles
In comparison to the first presidential debate, this one was more “civil,” many noted, with Pence’s soft-spoken debate style a contrast to Trump’s tone last week. But, as Washington Post reporters pointed out, he still repeatedly went over his allotted time and spoke over moderator Susan Page. Harris cut Pence off when he interrupted her and was often the more assertive of the two.
From the pair of liberal and conservative friends:
From the group of progressive moms:
From the college-aged antiabortion activists:
From the LGBTQ teenagers:
On Trump’s health and the administration’s coronavirus response
The issue of the pandemic was the opening topic of the night. The U.S. death toll has surpassed 211,000, and the disease has also come very close to Pence, who attended various events with associates who have since tested positive for the virus. Harris came out swinging when it came to the administration’s coronavirus response, calling it “the greatest failure of any presidential administration in the history of our country.”
From the group of LGBTQ teenagers:
From the group of college-aged antiabortion activists:
From the group of progressive moms:
On climate change
The two candidates clashed over the issue on climate change, with Pence denouncing the Green New Deal and claiming that Biden wanted to eliminate fracking, which Biden has not said. Harris, meanwhile, attacked Trump’s record, saying, “They don’t believe in science.”
From the LGBTQ teenagers:
From the progressive moms:
On abortion rights
With Judge Amy Coney Barrett’s nomination to the Supreme Court, the issue of Roe v. Wade has been top of mind for many voters. Pence said he couldn’t presume how Barrett would vote on abortion cases if she were confirmed to the Supreme Court, but both candidates ultimately made their beliefs known when it comes to abortion access. “I will always fight for a woman’s right to make a decision about her own body,” Harris said. Pence responded: “I’m pro-life. I don’t apologize for it.”
From the group of college-aged antiabortion activists:
October 7, 2020
Kristi
If you can't win by the rules you're going to change the rules ... will you pack the Supreme Court?!?!
Kristi
She never answered about court packing!!!
Kristan
That's the end of democracy as we know it
From the group of progressive moms:
From the group of LGBTQ teenagers:
On police reform
Both candidates were asked whether justice was done in the case of Breonna Taylor, the 26-year-old Black woman who was fatally shot by Louisville police officers in her apartment on March 13. A grand jury indicted only one of the officers in the case. Harris said she did not think justice was served, raising the killings of other Black people by the police. Pence claimed that there is not implicit racial bias in law enforcement and said that Trump had “repeatedly” condemned white supremacists, although he did not in last week’s debate with Biden.
From the pair of liberal and conservative friends:
From the group of LGBTQ teenagers:
On Harris’s facial expressions
One unexpected star of the night was Harris’s facial expressions — raised eyebrows, side eyes. Some said she reminded them of their own mothers, someone they wouldn’t want to cross, or their “Asian Aunties.”
From the group of LBGTQ teenagers:
From the college-aged antiabortion activists:
From the group of progressive moms:
And later in the night:
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