Star-studded "White Dudes for Harris" call draws 190K participants and raises almost $4 million

The livestream features celebrities like "The Dude" Jeff Bridges and some of Harris' top VP contenders

By Nandika Chatterjee

News Fellow

Published July 30, 2024 10:02AM (EDT)

Jeff Bridges attends the 2024 Disney Upfront at Javits Center on May 14, 2024 in New York City. (Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images)
Jeff Bridges attends the 2024 Disney Upfront at Javits Center on May 14, 2024 in New York City. (Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images)

Following Kamala Harris’ endorsement by President Joe Biden, a group of Black women pioneered a video call to support the vice president and raise funds for her campaign — white women, LGBTQ+ people, and South Asian supporters followed suit shortly after. This week, topping off the list is a historically privileged group: white men. 

The “White Dudes for Harris” video call Monday night accumulated over 190,000 viewers over the span of over three hours and raised almost $4 million for the surging Democrat, HuffPost reported

In both 2016 and 2020, former President Donald Trump won the votes of over 60% of white men, Reuters reported. Organizer Ross Morales Rocketto discussed how many working-class and poor white men found the GOP candidate’s restoring masculinity approach appealing. 

The star-studded event focused on how and why white men can help Harris beat Trump in November and included attendees like the literal “dude” Jeff Bridges, Mark Ruffalo, “Star Wars” actor Mark Hamill, professor and podcaster Scott Galloway, and "West Wing" star Bradley Whitford, among others. 

The event also attracted potential running mates for Harris —white male Democrats — who are reportedly under consideration to serve along her side: Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Michigan Sen. Gary Peters, and Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker. North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, who later announced he was removing himself from consideration, also delivered remarks on the livestream.

“We can get out there, reach out, make the case, and for one thing – don’t ever shy away from our progressive values,” Tim Waltz said, the HuffPost reported. “One person’s socialism is another person’s neighborliness."


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