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Kamala Harris was born on October 20, 1964, in Oakland, California, to Donald Harris, a Jamaican economist, and Shyamala Gopalan, an Indian-American biologist. She and her younger sister, Maya, grew up in Berkeley, where they were raised in a community that valued social justice and civic engagement.

Following her parents’ divorce in 1971, Kamala and her sister lived with their mother, who worked as a researcher and teacher in Montreal, Canada, where they moved frequently. After graduating from high school in Montreal in 1981, Kamala returned to the U.S. for her higher education. She attended Howard University in Washington, D.C., a historically Black university, where she studied economics and political science and was actively involved in student life.

After graduating from Howard in 1986, she enrolled in the University of California, Hastings College of Law. She earned her Juris Doctor degree in 1989 and was admitted to the California bar in 1990.

Kamala began her legal career in the district attorney’s office in Alameda County before moving to the San Francisco City Attorney’s office in 1998, overseeing the Division of Children and Family Services. In 2003, Harris was elected as San Francisco’s district attorney, becoming the first African American woman to hold the position. She earned a reputation as a tough prosecutor and introduced programs to reduce recidivism.

In 2010, she made history again by becoming California’s attorney general, the first African American, South Asian American, and woman to serve. She was re-elected in 2014. Harris focused on consumer protection, combating organized crime, and environmental preservation as attorney general. She also played a key role in negotiating a settlement with banks during the subprime mortgage crisis.

In 2016, Harris was elected to the U.S. Senate, making her the second Black woman and the first South Asian American woman to serve in the Senate. She became known for her sharp questioning in Senate hearings and her work on issues like immigration, criminal justice reform, and national security.

In January 2019, Harris launched her campaign for the 2020 presidential election. Although her campaign started strong, she struggled with fundraising and securing widespread voter support, leading her to withdraw in December 2019. However, her political career significantly changed when Biden selected her as his vice-presidential running mate in August 2020. This made her the first woman of Black and South Asian descent to be nominated for vice president by a major U.S. political party.

On November 3, 2020, the Biden-Harris ticket won the presidential election. On January 20, 2021, Kamala Harris was sworn in as the 49th Vice President of the United States, becoming the first woman, Black person, and the first person of South Asian descent to hold the office.

As vice president, Harris took on several key responsibilities, including leading the National Space Council, addressing immigration challenges at the southern border, and advocating for voting rights.

By 2023, Harris remained a prominent figure in American politics, playing a central role in the Biden administration and continuing to inspire many with her historic achievements and life story.

In July 2024, President Joe Biden announced that he would not seek reelection due to concerns about his health and age. Instead, he endorsed Vice President Harris as the Democratic nominee for president. Harris quickly secured enough delegates and was officially nominated in August 2024.

Her campaign focuses on key Democratic priorities, including gun control, abortion rights, climate action, and expanding healthcare access. She has also proposed increasing tax credits for families and placing price limits on prescription drugs. In foreign policy, Harris supports continued aid to both Israel and Ukraine, advocating for peaceful solutions to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Harris made history again in 2024, becoming the first Black woman and Asian American woman to lead a major party’s presidential campaign. To strengthen her campaign, she chose Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as her running mate, aiming to unite the Democratic base in her race against Donald Trump.