On November 29, 2020, President-elect Joe Biden made history by announcing that his communications team will be solely women. 

Many of these women also held positions during President Obama’s administration. With America’s diverse population, this move is even more important because the new officials are able to represent different cultures, heritages, and backgrounds. 

However, these women are no strangers to the political field. 

Kate Bedingfield, who served as deputy director of media affairs, and director of response under Obama’s administration, will serve as the White House communications director. Others include Elizabeth Alexander, Ashley Etienne, Karine Jean-Pierre, and Jen Psaki. 

Symone Sanders, who was the press secretary for Bernie Sanders’ 2016 presidential campaign, will serve in a senior communications role for Vice President-elect Kamala Harris with Ashley Etienne. She will also serve as the senior advisor. 

In his statement on the appointments, Biden stated that “communicating directly and truthfully to the American people is one of the most important duties of a President, and this team will be entrusted with the tremendous responsibility of connecting the American people to the White House.”

As America moves towards gender and racial diversity, it is important for different backgrounds to be represented. Biden makes this point clear by saying, “these qualified, experienced communicators bring diverse perspectives to their work and a shared commitment to building this country back better.”

VP-elect Harris has mentioned that Joe Biden “[broke] one of the most substantial barriers that exists in our country, and select[ed] a woman as his vice president.” 

And Biden has made history again, by appointing the first all-woman communications staff. To quote Harris, “I may be the first woman in this office, [but] I will not be the last.”