What's the hot merch at the DNC? 'Cat lady' T-shirts and 'my Black job' buttons

CHICAGO – The abrupt change at the top of the ticket has supercharged merchandise sales at the Democratic National Convention, with attendees snapping up Kamala Harris hats to "Voting is my Black job" T-shirts.

Pins, buttons, hats and shirts have long been a way to display support for a candidate, and Vice President Kamala Harris's "merch" is selling briskly, vendors said, especially shirts with her image on them, and especially in pink.

All week, large crowds have clustered into the McCormick Center's "DemPalooza" sales area. By Monday afternoon, Christen Carter, the owner of design-your-own Busy Beaver Button Co., said she'd sold at least 1,000 $15 buttons.

"Some people are putting 'crazy cat ladies for Harris' or 'single cat lady'," she said. "A lot of people are just doing their first name but others are having fun with it. People are very excited."

Among those excited button buyers is Idaho delegate Kevin Moxley, 47, who proudly wore one reading ",la" – a phonetic pronunciation guide to Harris's first name, which some of her critics routinely mispronounce.

"This is kind of the rebuttal to that. And I like that," Moxley said. "They keep saying it wrong and this is just my way of rebutting them."

Nebraska delegate Cynthia LaMer, 69, proudly sported a rhinestone-encrusted "Harris 2024" pin, which she was "ecstatic" to buy because she supported Harris during the 2020 primary. LaMer said she bought Biden merchandise during the last election cycle, and has been buying political-themed items since at least the early 1980s.

"I’m not going to wear it all the time, but it’s just something to add to your attire, and this one stood out to me," she said. "Look at it, it's blingy!"

Wearing a new American flag-themed cowboy hat, Pamela Cleveland, a guest of a delegate, showed off her "My #Blackjob is voting" T-shirt and buttons. From Temple, Texas, Cleveland said she was energized to see so many excited Democrats, and wanted people to know that liberals can wear flag-themed clothing, which has become associated with the Republican Party.

"We're taking our flag back, and our flag means freedom," she said. "It's my flag too."

Outside one of the main convention venues, screen printer, and independent T-shirt vendor Rod Robinson said pink-and-green Harris T-shirts were his bestsellers. The colors evoke Harris’ college sorority.

Robinson, 60, said he used to sell at the Republican convention but quit after Trump’s first run. He said that as a Black man, he felt uncomfortable with attendees' rhetoric. He now sends his adult son.

"It’s a different vibe. We used to do both parties but the vibe with the other party is so odd," he said. "Everyone's so upset, yelling at you all the time. It’s kind of scary."

In contrast, he said, the joy of Harris supporters is on full display, as he hung t-shirts from a fence and straightened hats.

"This is a pleasant crowd – everyone here is in a joyful spirit," he said.

Robinson said he hadn’t made any Biden 2024 shirts because they were never much in demand.

"His policies are great, but his shirts don't sell," Robinson said. "But people are excited for Harris."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: What's the hot merch at the DNC? 'Cat lady' T-shirts and 'my Black job' buttons