Indian-American politician Kamala Harris, a California senator and former state attorney general, on Monday announced that she is running for president, joining the field of Democrats looking to challenge President Donald Trump in 2020.
"I am running for president of the United States, and I'm very excited about it," Harris said on Good Morning America, adding that she was "honored" to make that announcement on a day celebrating King's legacy.
Here are few things to know about Harris, 54:
- Harris is a first-term US senator and known for her perpetual questioning of President Donald Trump's nominees. She is the eight person to vie for the party's nomination for the Democratic presidential race.
- During the 2016 election, when Democrat Hillary Clinton was in the race for the White House against Republican billionaire Donald Trump, Harris became California state’s first US senator. She became only the second Black woman in history to to serve in the United States Senate.
- Harris served two terms as district attorney of San Francisco (2004-2011), before being elected as attorney general of California (2011-2017), the first woman of colour to do so.
- In 2017, the former prosecutor was sworn in as California's junior US senator.
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- According to her staff, Harris' campaign’s logo is inspired by the logo of Shirley Chisholm, the first black woman to run for president for a major party 47 years ago.
- Daughter of immigrants from Jamaica and India, Harris focused on her campaign slogan, "For the People", echoed on the rising cost of living for middle-class Americans. She is expected to capitalise on her party's growing diversity.
"The future of our country depends on you and millions of others lifting our voices to fight for our American values. That's why I'm running for president of the United States," the senator said in a video posted on Twitter.
- Securing the nomination would make Harris the first African-American or Indian-American woman to be a major party nominee for the presidency.
- She is from California and has been compared to former President Barack Obama, who also ran for president just two years after entering the Senate.
- Senator Harris has made her name since being elected to Congress. She is a sharp critic of President Donald Trump and is described as a rising star within the party.
- She has one of the most liberal voting records in the US Senate at a time when Democrats are leaning to the left, but she also has a background as a hard-nosed prosecutor.
- The campaign also premiered a logo that reads “Kamala Harris For The People”.
The 2020 Democratic presidential race is already breaking records with four women candidates running national campaigns. More power to Harris!
Feature Image Credit: Iknowpolitics.org
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