The Senator in Tailored Separates for Vice Presidential Debate

Senator Kamala Harris chose familiar styles for Wednesday night’s vice-presidential debate in Salt Lake City, structured pieces in solid colors, sans any distracting embellishment.

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Below, the candidate with her husband, Doug Emhoff, before she took the stage, in a photo Mr. Emhoff posted on social media.

Below you have another view of the Senator when she was backstage with Pete Buttigieg, who was part of the pre-debate planning team. Bloomberg reports, “Buttigieg was selected to play the role of Pence because of his familiarity with the vice president, who was governor of Indiana when Buttigieg was mayor of South Bend. Buttigieg often talked about Pence on the campaign trail, using him as a foil especially on religion.”

The event’s significance can’t be overstated. More from Erin Evans’ HuffPo story:

It was a historic moment — for women, for Black people, for people of Asian descent and for people at the intersections of all of those identities — to see a woman of color speaking truth to power at another pivotal moment in our nation’s history.

Ms. Harris chose a dark navy (possibly black, but I think it is a dark navy) suit, navy shell or top, and classic pumps for the event. The debate was moderated by USA Today Washington bureau chief Susan Page.

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She accessorized with what looks like a new necklace, an American flag pin, some of her signature bracelets, and a wristwatch.

The necklace showcased pearls with turquoise stones attached on a gold link chain. It very much looks like it could be another Irene Neuwirth design.

UPDATE: It turns out this was an Irene Neuwirth necklace. Below, the Pearl Link Necklace in 18kt Yellow Gold ($26440).

The piece showcases cultured Akoya pearls, “each set in its very own 18k yellow gold cup complimented with a diminutive turquoise cabochon.” The 16″ necklace was designed and made in Los Angeles.

And here you see some of the Senator’s signature bracelets and her mabe pearl earrings.

Thought about the ensemble from Vanessa Friedman’s column for the New York Times.

And when the California senator took the debate stage, she dressed for it. She went fully dark — dark pantsuit, dark shell beneath — even as she smiled and shook her head as if in amazement at the absurdity of what she was hearing from the other side.

In this, she was fully in line with her own recent appearances — she has made something of a practice of wearing dark colors, opting for deep navy for the first debate of the Democratic presidential candidates, and dark burgundy for her speech at the Democratic National Convention.

Ms. Harris opted for a different narrative, one that signals a new generation and a new start and calls to mind ninjas, Navy SEALs and funerals. That has its own risks, but it also has a certain authenticity. She has always had to be a fighter. Why not acknowledge it?

And perspective from overseas via Emily Cronin’s piece for London’s Daily Telegraph:

Most women in politics seek to wear anything but black. When she ran for president in the 2016 election, Hillary Clinton cycled between suits in varying tones of red, white and blue throughout the campaign.

But at last night’s debate, black was the only appropriate choice specifically due to its grave connotations. Harris’s outfit emphasised the seriousness of our current moment while silently acknowledging the senses of despair and mourning so many Americans have endured over the past several months.

Indeed, Harris’s debate look enhanced her gravitas. The onetime prosecutor (who must have lived in black suits in her courthouse days) looked confident, at ease. Her suit backed her up when she had to resort, again and again, to reminding Pence, “Mr. Vice President, I’m speaking. I’m speaking.”