Kamala Harris: A woman of firsts

Kamala Devi Harris was born in Oakland, California on October 20, 1964. Her father, Donald J. Harris, is a renowned US-Jamaican scientist. Her mother, Shyamala Gopalan Harris, was a noted Indian biomedical scientist who conducted research into breast cancer. This undated photo shows Harris at her mother's lab in Berkeley, California.

After their parents divorced, Kamala Harris (left) and her younger sister, Maya, lived with their mother, moving to Montreal, Canada when Kamala was 12. Gopalan Harris died of cancer in 2009. "She raised us to be proud, strong Black women, and she raised us to know and be proud of our Indian heritage," said Harris as she accepted the Democratic Party's vice presidential nomination in 2020.

Both of Harris' parents were active in the US civil rights movement, and in her autobiography she wrote that this had a major impact on her own career. In this November 1982 photo, Harris is seen at the age of 18 during her freshman year at Howard University in Washington, taking part in an anti-apartheid demonstration.

Harris graduated from Howard University in 1986 and went on to study at the Hastings College of the Law at the University of California in San Francisco. In 1990, she began her career as a deputy district attorney in Alameda County, California.

In 2004, Harris was sworn in as San Francisco's first female district attorney, becoming also the first woman of color to hold the post. When she received the oath of office, her mother (center) held a copy of the US Bill of Rights in her hand. The document comprises the first 10 amendments to the constitution and guarantees personal freedoms and rights and clear limitations on government power.

In January 2011, Harris took on the role of California's attorney general — once again, the first woman and the first person of color in the job. She attracted criticism for her opposition to the death penalty and her support of an anti-truancy program.

In 2016, Harris decided to run for the California State Senate — and won. She stepped down as attorney general and was sworn in by the outgoing vice president, Joe Biden, in January 2017. Her husband Douglas Emhoff, an entertainment lawyer whom she married in 2014, stood next to her with a Bible in his hand.

In early 2019, Harris announced she would be seeking the Democratic presidential nomination in the 2020 election against Donald Trump. She was up against Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders (center) and former Vice President Biden, among others. Harris pulled out of the race in December 2019 before the primaries, endorsing Biden in March 2020. He named her as his running mate in August.

In November 2020, Harris and Biden won the presidential election for the Democrats. They celebrated the historic win in Wilmington, Delaware — wearing face masks in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

On January 20, 2021, Harris was sworn in as the first female vice president of the US and the first person of color to hold the post. The ceremony took place under strict security conditions: on January 6, Trump supporters had stormed the US Capitol building insisting that he had won the election.

One of the first tasks Biden gave Harris was to look into the root causes of migration, primarily from South America. She visited various countries as part of her efforts, including Guatemala in June 2021. The Republican Party has repeatedly criticized Harris for failing to come up with an adequate solution to the thorny issue of illegal migration.

Like Biden, Harris is a strong advocate of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in his efforts to defend Ukraine against Russia, describing Russia's actions as "cruel," "horrendous" and "gruesome." At the Munich Security Conference in February 2024, Harris also pledged the US' ongoing support for NATO and international cooperation — a stark contrast to Republican presidential candidate Trump.

Harris also differs from the Republican Party when it comes to the issue of abortion. After the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and ended the constitutional right to abortion in June 2022, she launched a campaign for reproductive freedoms — an issue that is particularly important to young voters. Many Republicans want to restrict abortion rights even further.

If the Democrats officially choose Harris as presidential candidate in August, she will have about 100 days to select a running mate and run a successful campaign against Trump. She has already received many endorsements and millions in donations since Sunday, and analysts say she could inspire people of color to vote for her. But racist and sexist attitudes could also work against her.