“Samantha, a Cosmopolitan and Donald Trump. You don’t get more New York than that.”
Eek!
The criminally convicted ex-president’s Sex and the City cameo can be startling to newcomers of the gay classic, who may be discovering our favorite girls for the first time with the series now on Netflix. But there he was, sitting in a corner booth, schmoozing with an elderly bachelor who nearly woos Samantha with his millions (until he drops his drawers, that is).
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Of course, Trump was perceived differently back then. He was fixture in the Manhattan social scene, with his golden escalator representing gaudiness rather than creeping authoritarianism. It makes perfect sense that PR maven Samantha Jones and Trump would float in the same circles.
But does that mean she would vote for him?
A never-ending gift to gay online discourse, the Sex and the City gals were ambiguous about their politics. Carrie Bradshaw, who wasn’t even registered to vote, once declared that politics were as relevant to her as “a new Erica Jong novel.” 🤔
Samantha, for her part, didn’t believe in Republicans or Democrats. “I just believe in parties,” she famously quipped.
It was a different time back then, when uber-wealthy white women didn’t cover their front lawns with signs declaring they believe “science is real” and “no human is illegal.” Bill Clinton was in office, and the good times were rolling… at least, for the Carrie Bradshaws and Samantha Joneses of the world.
While Cynthia Nixon proudly boasts her left-wing politics, Miranda Hobbes probably wouldn’t have been caught dead wearing a “p*ssy hat.” And don’t even spout such vulgarity around Charlotte York, the bourgeois WASP who dreams of marrying Trey MacDougal.
Looking back, the show handles a myriad of social and political issues poorly, especially when it comes to queer representation.
Carrie, the most prudish, closed-minded sex columnist of all time, dismissed bisexuality as a “layover on the way to gay town.” Samantha used derogatory slurs when feuding with Black transgender sex workers, who made too much noise outside of her palatial new apartment.
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Still, it would be inaccurate to say the Sex and the City women were conservative. They were a groundbreaking foursome, open about their sexual desires and career aspirations.
Above all else, the SATC women were unapologetically transactional… just like the men whom they scorned and chased.
With that in mind, one super fan on social media surmised Samantha “largely votes Republican.” The declaration caused a stir!
Samantha Jones: she’s in her bag. Largely votes republican but as the most Trump coded of the girls donates to both parties and makes sure she’s seen with notable figures from both sides. pic.twitter.com/oK09i2k6Mz
— Gay Interrupted (@GeyInterrupted) October 22, 2024
“Absolutely not. There’s no way Samantha would be a Republican,” responded left-leaning influencer Chris Evans.
Absolutely not. There’s no way Samantha would be a Republican. https://t.co/5KSnNTo6R0
— chris evans (@notcapnamerica) October 23, 2024
But can we really be so sure?
The answer is a definite “no,” just like the chance of Samantha Jones reuniting with Carrie and Co.
a fundamental misunderstanding because Samantha literally says: “I don't believe in the Republican party or the Democratic party. I just believe in parties.”
— alex (@alex_abads) October 23, 2024
she’s alsoin the Donald Trump cameo.
… and candace bushnell was in the og rhony circle and like we know how they vote https://t.co/DKZgx4LS4b
If anyone is secretly voting Republican it’s Carrie. Samantha is a PROUD Democrat and defender of women’s rights.
— Joseph Guarino 🐲🐝🏳️🌈🚊🦉 (@RoninJoey) October 23, 2024
Charlotte is definitely the Republican in that group
— Paul Whittemore (@paulwhittemore) October 23, 2024
Socially, Samantha isn't republican but when it comes to Finances… she's voting Rep!! https://t.co/oxgccOBsSW
— Seanathan Taylor Thomas (@cool_i_gan) October 23, 2024
Oh you’re terrible at reading into characters because she would hate that life sized Cheeto man https://t.co/yhD5ESff7p
— Ethan Amor🍂 (@TheEthanAmor) October 23, 2024
i’ve never watched sex and the city and even i know there’s no way in hell samantha would vote republican https://t.co/pAM4FHp31c
— chip skylark (@scotty__13) October 23, 2024
I disagree: Sam votes Republican, Carrie usually doesn’t vote, but when she does, she’s a Dem… & Charlotte is a late convert to centrist liberalism, post Harry and definitely after Trump
— Gremliny Nussboo (@emilynussbaum) October 23, 2024
Speaking of And Just Like That…, the SATC women are much more political nowadays.
Radicalized by Trump’s “Muslim Ban,” Miranda quits her job as a high-powered corporate attorney to pursue civil rights work, while Carrie hosts a podcast with a nonbinary standup comic… who becomes Miranda’s romantic obsession (tragically, some would say).
The characters’ apparent leftward shifts fits with the times. Wealthy, highly educated voters in urban areas are almost uniformly Democrats, and white women are fleeing Trump in general. He may garner the least support from white women of any GOP candidate this century.
With that said, it’s fair to assume the SATC girls wouldn’t vote for Trump in 2024 (Sarah Jessica Parker endorsed Kamala Harris on Wednesday). But how about George W. Bush in 2000, or Mitt Romney in 2012?
That’s much harder to decipher.
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Charlotte’s mother in-law would. The first one.
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You’re not wrong