The women serve as the public face of the Democratic Party in South Carolina, Nevada and Michigan. Here’s what they have planned for 2024.

Key Point: “For the next cycle, Biden and the Democratic National Committee rearranged the Democratic primary calendar to reflect the diversity of the Democratic electorate, putting South Carolina first, followed by Nevada on Tuesday and Michigan on February 27. And for the first time, Black women are leading all three of these Democratic state parties … Christale Spain in South Carolina, Daniele Monroe-Moreno in Nevada and Lavora Barnes in Michigan are all the first Black women to be party chairs in their states — raising money and serving as the Democrats’ public face.”

The 19th News: For the first time, Black women are leading Democrats in early primary states

By: Candice Norwood and Grace Panetta

• For the next cycle, Biden and the Democratic National Committee rearranged the Democratic primary calendar to reflect the diversity of the Democratic electorate, putting South Carolina first, followed by Nevada on Tuesday and Michigan on February 27. 

• And for the first time, Black women are leading all three of these Democratic state parties … Christale Spain in South Carolina, Daniele Monroe-Moreno in Nevada and Lavora Barnes in Michigan are all the first Black women to be party chairs in their states — raising money and serving as the Democrats’ public face.

• “Even before I got involved in the party, Black women have really been showing up for Democratic candidates,” said Spain, chair of the South Carolina Democratic Party. “We show up and volunteer, we show up and vote, really, as a big voting bloc.”

• In interviews with The 19th, all three said they were focused on communicating Biden’s accomplishments and unifying the party in support of the president and other Democratic candidates, in addition to leading year-round organizing and voter engagement on the ground. 

• “I’m a mom and a grandma, and I take my state party position as being like the mom of the Democratic Party for the state,” said Monroe-Moreno, chair of the Nevada Democratic Party and speaker pro tempore of the Nevada Assembly. 

• “It’s about unifying this party to get behind the people that we have currently in office to make sure we get them reelected. And it’s also seeking and mentoring and training young Democrats to come and take those seats behind us. I’m the first, I don’t want to be the last,” she said.

• For years, Democrats have referred to Black women as the “backbone” of the party — a designation celebrating their decades of party support and their community leadership fighting for equitable laws, registering voters or providing civic education.

• Spain, who became the first Black woman to chair the South Carolina Democratic Party in April, said it’s “extremely important” for Black women who have long been “showing up” as voters and organizers to be in positions of leadership.

• When entering the White House, Biden appeared committed to help shift that dynamic by appointing more Black women to prominent positions of power. He selected Vice President Kamala Harris, the first woman and Black and Asian-American person to serve in the position, as his running mate. He also appointed Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson as the first Black woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court. In total he has appointed 33 Black women to the federal bench. 

• Broader representation for Black women has spread to Democratic Party leadership as well. They now serve as state chairs in seven states, including three key battlegrounds: Nevada, Michigan and Georgia. Black women are vice chairs in seven other states.
  
• Congress has passed major Biden-backed investments in infrastructure, domestic manufacturing and clean energy, legislation the administration touts to voters as major drivers of economic growth and new job creation. Since Biden and Harris entered office, 14.8 million jobs have been created, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Barnes said in Michigan she and her team have noted the decrease in prescription drug prices and the administration’s support for union workers. 

• All of the chairs said they were focused on investing in year-round organizing, creating an ongoing dialogue between the party and voters in their states on key issues.