In a renovated warehouse in the Brooklyn Navy Yard, Hillary Clinton made history beneath a glass ceiling by shattering the metaphorical glass ceiling that has hung over women for 240 years of American political life.
“Don’t worry – we’re not smashing this one,” the second-time presidential candidate told ecstatic supporters of the roof above them.
Clinton's victory in the New Jersey primary on Tuesday night confirmed that she will be the first woman to top a US presidential ticket for a major political party.
The 68-year-old candidate and her supporters seized the historic moment on a emotional night, exactly eight years after she conceded defeat to Barack Obama in a speech about the “18 million cracks” in the highest glass ceiling.
Fans held up a sign saying “Caution: Shattered Glass” and letters that spelt out “History” with her ubiquitous “H” arrow logo as Clinton hailed her achievement as “a milestone” for women.
She framed it as the culmination of generations of struggle, dating back to the birth of the American women’s suffrage movement at Seneca Falls, New York in 1848.
“Tonight’s victory is not about one person. It belongs to generations of women and men who struggled and sacrificed and made this moment possible,” Clinton told more than 3,000 supporters.
VP candidates
Women from major parties have appeared on the national tickets before:
Sarah Palin
as running mate to Republican presidential candidate John McCain in 2008 and Democrat
Geraldine Ferraro
as Walter Mondale’s vice-presidential candidate in 1984. But they have never run for the presidency itself.
Victoria Claflin Woodhull, a leader in the women's suffrage movement, was the first woman to run for the US presidency, though she couldn't even vote for herself on election day, November 5th, 1872. It would take another 48 years before the 19th Amendment granted women the vote.
In her victory speech, Clinton spoke movingly about her mother, who was born on June 4th, 1919, the day Congress passed that amendment.
"I really wish my mother could be here tonight . . . I wish she could see her daughter become the Democratic Party's nominee for president of the United States, " she said to cheers from the crowd.
Almost a century after women got the vote, electing the first female president is acceptable but not a priority to most Americans.
A March CNN/ORC poll found that 80 per cent of voters felt the country was ready for a Madam President, up from 60 per cent a decade ago. But just 31 per cent said it was a very important priority.
"For American political life, it is time. It is more than time," said Melanne Verveer, Clinton's chief of staff when she was first lady. She noted how other countries, such as Ireland, "have been ahead of us" in electing women.
Clinton’s supporters leaving her Brooklyn victory party were swept up by the ground- breaking moment.
“I was just so happy to be part of history,” said Mauryne Horan, an advertising editor in New York. “It’s life-changing, not just for me but for so many people. And not just for women, but for all people.”
“It is amazing what she has been through, that she has the courage to persist through all of this and everything that has been thrown at her,” said Kate Missett (64), a teacher, leaving the rally with a friend.
“God bless her. She is a tough lady. She is all of our hero.”