By Tuesday Night in Chicago, a roll call vote at the Democratic National Convention was a formality. Weeks ago, the party confirmed that Vice President Kamala Harris had enough delegates to win the nomination.
But the first domino to fall in that chain of events? It happened the night of President Joe Biden’s historic withdrawal from the race. And Dottie Ferreira was among those who helped set those events in motion.
Ferreira, voting in her first election, is one of two of the youngest members of Tennessee’s Delegation.
“It’s kind of surreal, honestly,” said Ferreira. “I never really thought that I could see myself in this space, especially being 21 years old.”
Ferreira, a student at Sewanee: The University of the South, was part of the Tennessee delegation that garnered attention for being the first to endorse Kamala Harris to replace President Joe Biden after he announced his withdrawal from the race.
When Biden made his announcement, the Tennessee Delegation already had a previously scheduled conference call the same night. Shortly after that call was over, the Delegation announced they were pledging all of their delegates to Kamala Harris.
Ferreira explained the excitement that came with being a part of this pivotal moment.
“It’s amazing being in a space where we are able to support a presidential nominee,” Ferreira said. “I’m glad that we stepped up and decided that this was a good opportunity for us, and for other states that decided to come behind us. I have to admit, It’s amazing.”
In the weeks after Biden dropped out from the race and endorsed Kamala Harris, there has been a surge in voter registrations across the country. People are using both word of mouth and the internet to encourage people to register to vote, but there is still work to be done on multiple fronts.
As a student attending college in a predominantly Republican area in Tennessee, Ferreira understands the importance of seeing and understanding both sides of the ticket. Although there may be bias, it is important to understand where the opposite party is coming from to reach a middle ground.
“My mom and I talked about bringing in representatives to come speak to students to actually encourage them to vote because a lot of people in college tend to follow in their family’s footsteps,” said Ferreira. “Some people step out of their comfort zone, but it’s pretty rare.”
It is not uncommon for college-aged students to lean heavily toward a certain party based on how they saw their parents vote while they were growing up. Open and honest conversations could allow these students to learn and set a path of their own.
After the Democratic National Convention, Ferreira hopes to build on the momentum and continue to encourage people to register to vote. She acknowledges the importance of grassroots efforts during this time.
“Getting to know your community members, being a part of the polling process, or any type of volunteering [are all helpful],” said Ferreira. “Also, finding out the people that are not registered to vote and extending a hand to help them get the proper resources to register to vote and to get to the polls to vote.”
Although there are many things at stake in this election, there is no doubt that some issues are more glaring than others. Things like the economy, housing reform, and women’s rights are three of the top problems that people are hoping will be addressed.
“Kamala recently talked about the economy and housing reform, and with those things, especially with how capitalism is and everything increasing, that’s a very important conversation for people,” Ferreira said.
Ferreira also highlighted the importance of addressing abortion rights.
“Those three things: the economy, housing, and abortion rights, I feel like that really reels in people because those are the three massive topics that people have been really pushing and speaking about since Trump’s tenure.”
As the Democratic National Convention continues, the atmosphere is electric with a sense of history in the making, but Ferreira remains focused on the task ahead.
“We have 78 days,” Ferreira said. “People are really hyped, especially that Tennessee was the first to endorse Kamala, so I think people are trying to really get this going because this election is serious.”
While the work in the next few months is extremely important, it can’t stop there. In order for the Democratic Party to see a victory in November, communities have to actually show up at the polls.
“Please go out and vote. Register to vote. Tell your friends and family members [to vote]. Go out and vote because this is a very pivotal election,” Ferreira said.
