Kamala Harris Dons a Suit From a European Designer Label for DNC’s Opening Night
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For Monday’s opening night of the Democratic National Convention, Vice President Kamala Harris stepped out wearing a pantsuit from the French label Chloé.
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While many American designers, including independent ones like Sergio Hudson and Prabal Gurung, have suited up Harris for other key appearances, Harris’ choice of a French brand is notable. Last week it was revealed that a cadre of American designers were supporting Harris’ and her running mate Tim Walz’ campaign with “Designers for Democracy” merchandise. Along with Hudson and Gurung, Willy Chavarria, Victor Glemaud, Vera Wang, Thom Browne, Joseph Altuzarra, Tory Burch and Gabriela Hearst have created a hoodie, crewneck, scarf, tote bags and other items for the Democratic ticket.
Just as some American creatives have been quick to put the word out of any wardrobe ties to Harris, so too did representatives from Chloé on Tuesday.
Harris sported a bespoke khaki-colored grain de poudre wool suit and a white crepe de chine lavaliere blouse. The ensemble was designed by Chloé’s creative director Chemena Kamali. The German-born creative has more than 20 years of experience in the fashion industry, having had an earlier run at the house at the onset of her career and some time at Saint Laurent under Anthony Vaccarello.
Harris’ media team could not be reached immediately Tuesday. As has been the case with generations of politicians, her fashion choices are of great interest to many voters and delegates for key appearances. Millions will be tuning in on Thursday night when Harris officially accepts the Democratic presidential nomination at the DNC.
How Kamali connected with Harris, or her team, was not known. Requests to executives at Chloé seeking specifics about the connection, including a question about payment, had not been returned Tuesday afternoon.
A similar Chloé grain de poudre wool blazer jacket was listed with a retail price of $3,390 on Bergdorf Goodman’s site Tuesday, and the pants and the lavaliere blouse were selling for $1,350 and $1,490 respectively.
Harris isn’t the only Democratic force to have made pantsuits a signature look — so too has Hillary Clinton. The former first lady and former secretary of state lent her support to the Harris-Walz ticket at the United Center, delivering her remarks in a sand-colored pantsuit accessorized with gold bracelets and jewelry. Later in the program, First Daughter Ashley Biden introduce her presidential father Joe Biden to the DNC crowd in what looked like a pantsuit. The combination was a Gabriela Hearst single-breasted Leiva blazer and flared Allanon pants. Her ivory-colored wool woven jacket with recycled sequins and coordinating pants were offset with an oversized silver ring and a manicure with blue nail polish.
Now a social worker, the 43-year-old Biden had started a socially conscious clothing line called Livelihood in 2017. A spokesperson for Hearst did not respond to a media request Tuesday.
On Gabriela Hearst’s e-commerce site, the Leiva jacket and the Allanon pants were offered for $2,800 and $1,890, respectively. In 2021, the New York-based Hearst designed Jill Biden’s inaugural evening dress that was embroidered with the federal flowers of every state and territory in the U.S. Last fall Hearst ended a three-year run as the creative director of Chloé.
For Joe Biden’s State of the Union Address in March, many Democratic congresswomen chose to wear white as an homage to the color of choice for the suffragette movement and to raise awareness for women’s rights. Sportswear was not always a given for female politicians. In 1969, Rep. Charlotte Reid (R-III.) was said to be the first woman to wear pants on the House floor. But it wasn’t until 1993 that Sens. Barbara Mikulski, Nancy Kassebaum and Carol Moseley-Braun stepped out on the Senate floor credited wearing pants and breaking an unofficial dress code in what was then dubbed the “Pantsuit Revolution.”
Unlike Harris, Clinton and Ashley Biden, First Lady Jill Biden spoke of her husband’s 50 years of public service before thousands of DNC attendees wearing a shimmery contouring dress in pale blue. FLOTUS had worn the style for another key photo-op, a 2022 White House event that honored Sir Elton John with the National Humanities Medal.
Pantsuits aren’t the only trend with women in political orbits — so, too, are repeat designer outfits. Like Biden, Melania Trump shopped in her closet, so to speak, for last month’s Republican National Convention, attending the final night in a red updated version of Christian Dior’s Bar suit that she had first worn for a 2017 official visit with the former president to Paris to meet French president Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte.
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