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Megan Rapinoe thanks Black women as sports world reacts to presidential race being called for Joe Biden

Cassandra Negley
WNBA and women's college basketball reporter
·3 min read

Athletes took a bigger role in getting out the vote for the 2020 election and their activism has swung the election to president-elect Joe Biden.

The Associated Press made the call on Saturday morning for Biden over President Trump after more results from swing-state Pennsylvania came in. Poll workers in five states have been counting mail-in ballots since Election Day on Tuesday.

With the news finally official, athletes around the country took to Twitter to share in the news. Los Angeles Lakers champion LeBron James was early on the reaction and most athletes shared his posts, including WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson.

United States women’s national soccer team star Megan Rapinoe thanked Black women in a tweet immediately after the call was made. Rapinoe, who has regularly spoken against Trump’s policies and rhetoric, was likely referencing the work Black women have done canvassing for Democrats down the ticket and for showing up at the polls in droves.

She and fiancée Sue Bird, four-time WNBA champion, spent Monday on a call to encourage people phone banking for the now president-elect. Bird broke out a celebratory post a la James.

View this post on Instagram

I’VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS‼️‼️#BidenHarris2020 LETS GOOOO @joebiden @kamalaharris

A post shared by Sue Bird (@sbird10) on

The Seattle Storm, which won a fourth championship in franchise history last month, took the rare step of endorsing the Democratic ticket.

Alex Morgan must have been in the dressing room when she heard the news, since she made her Tottenham debut Saturday morning.

And WNBA players celebrated the first woman in a president or vice presidential role being a Black woman in Kamala Harris.

Megan Rapinoe, a common critic of President Trump, was one of the first to react to the election results being called in favor of Joe Biden. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco, File)
Megan Rapinoe, a common critic of President Trump, was one of the first to react to the election results being called in favor of Joe Biden. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco, File)

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