Dear Democrats: Voters embrace 'ambitious' women candidates like Kamala Harris

Good morning, Broadsheet readers! Dany Garcia is the first woman to co-own a sports league, Black women are called to run for office in Minnesota, and—believe it or not—we’re still talking about whether it’s okay for female politicians to be ambitious. Have a thoughtful Thursday.

– ‘Too ambitious.‘ With Joe Biden expected to announce his vice presidential pick any day now, there’s no shortage of gossip and speculation about who might get the nod—and who’s rooting for whom behind the scenes.

Sen. Kamala Harris is widely believed to be a top contender, and apparently that’s a problem for some in Biden’s circles. Why? Not because they see the California senator as lacking experience, or because she and presumptive nominee differ on important issues. Nope—it’s reportedly because they think Harris ultimately has her eye on the presidential prize. In other words, she is, yes, too ambitious.

Well, here we are! It’s 2020, and we’re still worrying about women who dare show their hunger for success. The whole thing is especially silly given that Harris recently wrapped up a run for president, so she hasn’t exactly been keeping her aspirations top secret. I’d argue that every single politician in Washington has a tremendous amount of ambition, which makes you wonder: Who gets to decide how much is too much—and why is the person on the wrong side of that equation almost always female?

So it was somewhat of a relief to read Emma’s story about new research by academics Ana Catalano Weeks and Sparsha Saha. Inspired by Hillary Clinton’s 2016 run, the pair set out to discover how voters react to ambitious female politicians. And despite the researchers’ assumption that they would be cataloging how much the public disliked obviously ambitious women, it turned out that people didn’t much care—they perceived no difference between ambitious female politicians and ambitious male politicians.

But if that’s true, why the digs against Harris? It may be more about the attitudes of the insiders quoted in these stories than the concerns of everyday voters, say the researchers. “To what extent are gatekeepers sexist themselves?” Saha asks. Or, to what extent are those gatekeepers’ ideas about the voting public outmoded? “Are they taking action thinking voters will punish ambitious women? Are they really just thinking about electability?”

Regardless, it’s way past time for everyone—including the men trashing Sen. Harris in the press—to realize how ridiculous it sounds to try to drag women for possessing one of the qualities most aligned with success. As Saha told Emma: “It’s just so absurd. Of course these people are ambitious.”

Kristen Bellstrom
kristen.bellstrom@fortune.com
@kayelbee

Today’s Broadsheet was curated by Emma Hinchliffe.

ALSO IN THE HEADLINES

- Must-watch. Tune in at 4 p.m. ET today to see our colleague Ellen McGirt, author of Fortune's raceAhead newsletter, lead a discussion about Black mothers in the workforce. Ellen will join Mother Honestly and Villo founder Blessing Adesiyan, social work professor Alexis Jemal, Inclusion Nation CEO Michelle Silverthorn, Fair Play author Eve Rodsky, and Pipeline CEO Katica Roy for a session devoted to the unique challenges Black moms face at work and at home. Register here.

- Madame mayor. Hazel Chu, the new mayor of Dublin and first woman of color to hold the post, talks to the South China Morning Post about her Chinese heritage and her parents' experience immigrating to Ireland. "Hopefully, it will show other young people of different ethnic backgrounds that you can be whoever you want to be, no matter what your skin color is," she says of her election. South China Morning Post

- League of her own. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson drew headlines for his recent purchase of the XFL—a bid that was in partnership with business manager Dany Garcia, who is also Johnson's ex-wife. Garcia is now the first woman to own a stake in an entire sports league, rather than just a team. Sports Illustrated

- Called to campaign. Four Black women, called to action by George Floyd's killing, are running for Minnesota State Senate. Candidate Zina Alston Fizer says that after she saw the video of Floyd's death at the hands of law enforcement, she thought to herself, "OK, Zina, what are you going to do?" Elle

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IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

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- A movie worth fighting for. Disney's decision to release Mulan for a $29.99 rental on Disney+, rather than waiting until a potential theatrical release is feasible, takes a highly-anticipated women-led blockbuster off the big screen. (The movie was directed by Niki Caro.) Disney says it's viewing the decision as a "one-off" rather than a new distribution model. Fortune

- Game on. WNBA players have long had their differences with Sen. Kelly Loeffler, a co-owner of the Atlanta Dream—especially after she disagreed with the league's backing of the Black Lives Matter movement. Now some players are expressing their support for her Congressional opponent, Democrat Raphael Warnock. For more on the WNBA's activism, check out this New Yorker profile of players' union president Nneka Ogwumike. The Root