Hillary Clinton appeared during the first night of the 2024 Democratic National Convention. The former Secretary of State, 76, delivered a speech in support of Vice President Kamala Harris‘ presidential run, described the past 100 years of women’s progress in politics and reflected on her past campaign against Donald Trump in 2016.
The Democrat began her speech by pointing out that women were given the right to vote “104 years ago yesterday.”
“Think about it: Tennessee became the final state to ratify the 19th Amendment to the Constitution,” she said. “The state legislature was deadlocked until one lawmaker’s mother, a widow who read three newspapers a day, sent a letter — a letter to her son. ‘No more delays,’ she wrote. ‘Give us the vote.’ And since that day, every generation has carried the torch forward.”
Hillary Clinton just destroyed Donald Trump at the DNC and made a great point. pic.twitter.com/I9WISn4sxq
— Ed Krassenstein (@EdKrassen) August 20, 2024
While noting that women in history “refused to give up on America,” Hillary recalled becoming the Democratic Party’s nominee during her 2016 presidential campaign, calling it the “honor of [her] life.”
“And nearly 66 million Americans voted for a future where there are no ceilings on our dreams,” she added. “I wish my mother and Kamala’s mother could see us. They would say,’Keep going,’ surely. … Families building better lives, parents stretching to afford childcare, young people struggling to pay their rent — they’re all asking us to keep going.”
In addition to running for president in 2016, Hillary previously ran for office in 2008 against former President Barack Obama. During his presidency, she served as the U.S. Secretary of State from 2009 to 2013.
This is a really sweet moment watching Gwen Walz, wife of Tim Walz, react to Hillary Clinton pic.twitter.com/9Lh444NHy2
— Adam Parkhomenko (@AdamParkhomenko) August 20, 2024
“You know, the story of my life and the history of our country is that progress is possible, but not guaranteed,” Hillary pointed out toward the end of her DNC speech. “We have to fight for it and never, ever give up. There is always a choice. Do we push forward or pull back, come together as we the people or split into us versus them? That’s the choice we face in this election.”
While closing out her remarks, Hillary insisted that Kamala, 59, “has the character, experience, and vision to lead us forward” as a former prosecutor, senator and attorney general of California.
“We have to fight for Kamala as she will fight for us,” Hillary concluded, while adding that Democrats have Donald, 78, “on the run now” in this election. “Because you know what? It still takes a village to raise a family, heal a country, and win a campaign. And America needs every one of us, our energy, our talents, our dreams. We’re not just electing a president. We are uplifting our nation. We’re opening the promise of America wide enough for everyone. Together, we’ve put a lot of cracks in the highest, hardest glass ceiling. And tonight, tonight’s so close to breaking through once and for all.”