Presumptive US Democratic Nominee Joe Biden will later on Wednesday appear together with his running mate after announcing California Senator Kamala Harris as his Vice Presidential pick Tuesday.
Harris becomes the first black woman and first person of Indian descent to join a major party ticket in a presidential election in the United States. The once rival of Biden who clashed with the former Vice President over issues of race during the Democratic primaries has since emerged as a vocal supporter since dropping out.
Biden informed Kamala Harris that she was his pick for VP during a virtual call from his residence in Delaware. Ending months of speculation that saw the campaign keep their decision under wraps until they wanted it known.
Harris speaking in January last year says, ‘The vast majority of us have so much more in common than what separates us, and we have to hold on to that knowledge — and paint a picture of the future and have a vision of the future in which everyone can see themselves. It’s critically important, and I believe we can achieve that. But not if we, not if we don’t fight, we got to fight to get there. We got to fight to get there and it’s worth it. And it is worth it because, all said and done, flawed though we may be, imperfect though we may be — this country is worth fighting for.”
Harris is the daughter of immigrants. Her father Jamaican and her mother Indian. She grows up in both a black Baptist church and a Hindu temple.
She’s a graduate of Howard – a Historically Black University and would later become District Attorney of San Francisco.
In 2010, she was elected Attorney General of California where she was known for her ‘tough on crime’ policies before running for United States Senator in 2016 – elected in the same year that Donald Trump defeated Hillary Clinton.
Fordham University’s Professor Christina Greer says, “I think that Kamala Harris January 20th will be ready to go, I think that she definitely has the intellect to do so, what concerns me is the campaign phase, the fact that we can pretty much write the attacks that Donald Trump will use. If he does choose Kamala Harris, he will quickly have to articulate to voters, this was the past, we’ve all changed positions at some point in time, we grow, learned more, but her role as the top cop in the largest state in the United States will definitely be something that they’ll have to frame, reframe for the American public especially for black voters who were disproportionally victims of the criminal justice system.”
With Biden, 77 years old and Harris 22 years younger, she balances the ticket not only from an age perspective but also race and gender – key demographics in any successful Democratic Party campaign – as attested to by residents of the region she grew up in.
A resident of Berkeley, California, Earlita Chenault says, “I was thrilled. I was worried that he’d forget about black women and his promise but he came through. And it’s a fantastic pick because she’s going to help keep Trump honest, make him talk about the issues, and she’s really going to tear them up at the debate”.
An Oakland resident, Shawn Weeden says, “I think that it’s a great choice. It gives the feminine voice there. It also gives the people of color voice. And since she could not make the bid with running for president, I think it’s a great choice. It shows that we’re making some sort of progress as a country, and that’s a ticket that I would vote for.”
Attacks from the man they are seeking to unseat came quickly – here’s President Donald Trump.
“She was very disrespectful to Joe Biden. And it’s hard to pick somebody that said disrespectful – she said things during the debates, during the Democrat primary debates that were horrible about ‘Sleepy Joe’. And I would think that he wouldn’t have picked her.”
Former President Barack Obama tweeted a message of support saying he’d known Harris for a long time and that she was more than prepared for the job. Hillary Clinton also chimed in saying she was thrilled to welcome Harris to a historic Democratic ticket.
India reacts to Harris’ nomination
Senator Harris’ mother hails from India. And that’s why many in India are excited to see her name on the VP ticket. Ishan Garg has more on this from New Delhi.
-Additional reporting by Ishan Garg
