Whether they wear royal blue and gold, royal blue and white, crimson and cream, or salmon pink and apple green, Divine Nine members — a group of nine historical Black fraternities and sororities formally called The National Pan-Hellenic Council — in Houston are uniting this presidential election cycle in support of one of their own: Vice President Kamala Harris.

“The Greek love is incredible,” said Sherry Whirl of Houston. “We are backing her 100 percent. We want to see her get her victory in November.”

Whirl, who was initiated into Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Inc.’s Gamma Phi Sigma Alumnae Chapter in 2002, was one of many SGRs who was excited to hear Harris speak Wednesday at the sorority’s 60th International Biennial Boule at the George R. Brown Convention Center. 

To her and many of the other Divine Nine members in attendance, Harris’ presidential campaign is reminiscent of the hope and momentum they felt when former president Barack Obama ran in 2008. The only difference now is Harris, who is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc., offers an opportunity to shatter another glass ceiling as potentially the first female, the first Black woman, the first Indian-American and the first member of the Divine Nine to become president. 

“(She’s) very relatable,” Whirl said just minutes before Harris took the stage. 

“She’s someone that you look up to. The younger generation, it’s giving them hope that they can be anything that they want to be because they see her dream becoming a reality. So for her (going from) vice president to president, it just shows you that the sky is the limit.”

Many, including Whirl, expressed that they never thought such a day would come where a Black woman, who also happens to be part of the Divine Nine, would be at the top of the ticket for presidency. 

“That is something that you just cannot overlook,” said Tunesia Benard, East Texas state director of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Inc.  “And to be one of our divine nine sisters — that is the icing on the cake.”

To some, whether Harris wins or not, in their eyes, she’s already won in cultural representation.

“The fact that she’s running in general is wonderful,” said Markisha Bates, who was initiated into the Houston Metropolitan Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. this year. “It’s really exciting for all of us no matter what organization you’re a part of.”

The Boule, which also hosted a gala, step show, workshops, and service projects, was also historic, marking the organization’s first in Houston since 1996. It also netted the City of Houston an economic impact of $10 million during the conference, poured more than $550,000 of philanthropic contributions directly to Houston-area organizations in areas such as maternal and mental health, education, voting rights, food disparities, among others, according to a release. 

As Harris took the stage addressing her “family,” she praised the organization’s success and rallied her fellow divine nine sisters who represent a key voting bloc: Black women.

Speaking over a roar of Ee-yip’s— Sigma Gamma Rho’s sorority call — Harris spoke of the sorority’s history of service, leadership, and mobilization that led to progress, including the 2020 election that landed herself and President Joe Biden into the Oval Office, and commissioned their leadership once again.

“There’s so much at stake in this moment,” Harris said, announcing the days left before Election Day. 

“And in this moment, once again, our nation is counting on you to energize, to organize, and to mobilize; to register folks to vote and get them to the polls. Because when we organize, mountains move. When we mobilize, nations change.  And when we vote, we make history.”

The event marked Harris’ third visit to Texas and her third appearance at a Black sorority’s Boule in the last month, following speeches at Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Inc.’s Grand Boulé in Indianapolis on July 24, and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc.’s 71st Boulé in Dallas on July 10.

Understanding the assignment

But before Harris even said a word or took the stage, Houston members of the Divine Nine already understood their assignment. 

“This is a grand occasion and we all want to be here to collaborate with our sister,” said Benard. 

“As a D9 organization, we make sure that we back each other. We always have each other’s backs. It’s one large sisterhood regardless of the particular organization and we’re here for our sister and here to back her 100 percent as an organization.”

Although all of the Divine Nine organizations are nonprofit, nonpartisan organizations that cannot officially endorse candidates, the Council of Presidents of the NPHC issued a statement the day after President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 race and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for president, vowing to meet the historic moment with “unprecedented voter registration, education and mobilization coordinated campaign.” 

“This campaign will activate the thousands of chapters and members in our respective organizations to ensure strong voter turnout in the communities we serve. This nonpartisan coordinated voter mobilization effort builds on our shared legacies of social action and service to our communities,” the statement read.

But regardless of nonprofit restrictions, “Divine Nine” members will still find a way to mobilize voters both officially through separate sorority and fraternity political or social action committees and unofficially through word of mouth, said Carla Brailey, an associate professor of sociology at Texas Southern University who is also a member of Delta Sigma Theta Inc. 

NPHC touts more 2.5 million active members and droves of alumni members, according to the U.S. Small Business Administration. NPHC members are also typically leaders in civic, business, and faith communities, a strength that Brailey is confident will have a huge impact on Harris’ success in this upcoming election. 

“What you are going to see is these Divine Nine inexplicably linked networks, bound by service and engagement to the Black community,” she said. “Many of us belong to multiple organizations, fostering cross-talk, coordinated messaging, and collaborative efforts. We’ll be in formation, no doubt. We are clear about our assignment and the need for representation.”

But civic engagement, advocacy and justice is nothing new for Divine Nine organizations who have been at the frontlines of a number of social justice movements over the years dating back to their inception in the early 1900s including the Women’s Suffrage march, the Civil Rights Movement and Black Lives Matter.

“We’ve been organizing a very long time on this,” Brailey said. “All we had was our word. We had paper during that time because of course technology was not as advanced as it is now, (but) all we were able to do was organize. And we’ve been doing that under pressure for a long, long time. This is not new to us. …This is not our first rodeo.”

It is also not Harris’ first time running for president. She was a candidate in the 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries but withdrew from the race in December 2019, citing a lack of funds. This time around, Harris has not had difficulty obtaining contributions, raising a record-breaking $310 million in July for her short 120-day campaign, banking on support garnered from a series of identity-based Zoom gatherings including Black men and women, Latinas, South Asians, and many other cultures. 

Brailey said the difference lies in the way Harris’ campaign is embracing all facets of diversity that Harris offers, including understanding what her status as a member of the Divine Nine entails. 

“All of these sororities and fraternities were founded on service,” said Brailey. “This was not (something) that you only do in undergrad, and it just goes away. People have made a lifetime commitment that aligns with values.”

Brailey said while some people generally understand race, gender and class, the legacy and power of Divine Nine organizations are still largely a new concept for many people, particularly white America, she said.  

“That’s why it can be underestimated for the way that we are going to be able to organize,” she said. “Not everybody is a part of the Divine Nine but it’s a capability to be able to move people.”

Could Texas turn blue?

As the former vice chair of the Texas Democratic Party, Brailey said she has no doubt that Harris will win in the predominantly Democratic Harris County. 

“We have Kamala Harris running, and we’re in Harris County so, go figure,” she said. “We’re invigorated. We have a candidate that we think the people will be on board (with) — a people’s candidate.”

But is it enough to flip Texas —  a historically red state —  blue?

Harris County Democratic Party Mike Doyle said that it’s “doable” if Harris County hits 1.1 million Democrats who turn out to vote in this election. 

“It’s all over for the Republicans,” he said. “It really comes down to nothing more, nothing less, than what we do in Harris County.”

Doyle said although the party now has a “superstar” in Harris who on Saturday secured the Democratic nomination for president, they’re not counting on a superstar. The issue, rather, is largely a voter turnout issue, he said, which is why the party has been deep canvassing since January to target the roughly 287,000 voters who do not consistently head to the polls. 

“The plan is to engage those voters so they show up,” he said. “The idea is that we don’t just show up in October and say, ‘Hey, vote!’ We’re actually out there engaging, finding out what the issues are that engage those voters, making sure they know who we are, and not just in October.”

Although the Harris County Democratic Party has been active in voter engagement since the beginning of the year, Doyle acknowledged that he has seen an overall significant increase in enthusiasm lately, including U.S. Rep. Colin Allred’s recent kick-off voter rally in his bid to unseat Republican incumbent Sen. Ted Cruz.

“All of our events have been incredibly well attended,” he said. “We’re getting more volunteers picking up the phone and calling us to sign up than we’ve had so I think the spike in injection of adrenaline has hit Harris County at least.”

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