A litany of firsts, Kamala Harris' vice-presidential candidacy could give Joe Biden, the Democratic presidential nominee for the impending election, an edge over Donald Trump. She is the first Asian American candidate on a presidential ticket of either Democrats or Republicans and first Black vice presidential candidate.
While Harris' identity as a Black woman is highly recognized, her Asian American identity isn't well-known. Her father was a Jamaican, while her mother had emigrated from India to the United States. Her first name, Kamala, in Sanskrit means "lotus."
Harris often talks about her mother, Shyamala Gopalan, who is a breast cancer scientist and was an active participant in the 1960s civil rights movement. "I'm the daughter of a mother who broke down all kinds of barriers," she proudly wrote about her mother in an Instagram in May.
She described her in the post as someone who was no more than 5 feet tall but seemed like seven feet tall to those who met her. Harris noted that her mother had a lot of "spirit and tenacity" and is thankful to have been raised by her.
Harris, who visited India to meet their family there, has ties to her Indian relatives. During a recently concluded interview with Reuter's partner ANI, Harris' maternal uncle, Gopalan Balachandran dubbed Biden's selection of her as his running mate was a historic day for the Indian community.
From the former vice president's perceptive, Harris' background could help him appeal to Asian American voters, who the Pew Research Center suggests are the fastest-growing demographic of eligible voters among the major racial and ethnic groups in America. The 2016 post-election national Asian American Survey discovered that 1.1 million new Asian American voters cast a ballot in the 2016 election.
Indian Americans have a reputation for voting for Democratic. A noteworthy 69 percent of Asian Americans voted for Hillary Clinton in 2016, with 77 percent o Indian Americans voting for Clinton in 2018 according to NAAS, and AAPI (Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders) Data shows that 50 percent of Indian Americans identify themselves as Democrats.
Director of the National Asian American Survey, and professor of public policy and political science at the University of California, Riverside, Karthick Ramakrishnan said he thinks even before Biden picked Harris, Asian Americans were likely gearing up for record increases in voter turnout.
The still-raging coronavirus has led researchers to wonder if a lesser number of voters will be participating this year, Ramakrishnan told CBS News. But with Biden choosing Harris, Asian American voters would be more than just looking forward to voting this year.