INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Kamla Devi Harris, the Democratic vice -presidential nominee, has been in news over the past few months and even more so now as Joe Biden
inches closer to becoming the next President of the United States of America.With Harris looking set to takeover as United States' first
woman, African-American and Indian-American Vice President, here is a look at her political journey and what her vice-presidency could mean
Harris had also served as the Attorney General of California between 2011 and 2017 and as the District Attorney of San Francisco from 2004
to 2011.In 2004, Harris ran for District Attorney of San Francisco and won with 56 per cent of the vote, becoming the first person of color
elected as district attorney of San Francisco.She is credited with improving the conviction rate for felony and drug dealing during her term
Just prior to Harris taking office, the felony conviction rate was 50 percent
By 2009, it was 76 percent
for the state's attorney general
She was sworn in on January 3, 2011, becoming the first woman, the first African American, and the first South Asian American to hold the
office in the state's history
On November 4, 2014, Harris was re-elected against Republican Ronald Gold, winning 57.5 per cent of the voteIn 2016, she contested for US
Senate elections and upon winning, emerged as the second African American woman and the first South Asian American to serve in the United
for undocumented immigrants, ban on assault weapons, and progressive tax reform.She rose to prominence during Senate hearings of Trump
administration officials, including US President Donald Trump's second Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, who was accused of sexual
assault.KAMALA'S INDIA CONNECTIONBorn to a Jamaican father and a Tamilian mother from Chennai, Kamala has not been shy of embracing her
connection with her roots
In fact, she has managed to use her ethnicity to appease the minority and gain more supporters for her party in the presidential
(Tamil for aunts), talked about her mother, who came to the United States from Chennai as a breast cancer researcher, and also mentioned her
In doing so, Harris connected with several constituencies at the same time, including 4.5 million Indian Americans, 1.9 mn of whom are
eligible to vote.Back home, Indians are thrilled by the prospect of an Indian-origin woman occupying the second-highest political office in
This was evident when banners and placards of Harris popped up across the southern city of Chennai, the hometown of Harris' mother, days
RELATIONSThe Indian American community was exhilarated by her selection
material difference in the long run, but in the near term, a Trump win is likely to benefit IT along with chemicals and tiles, whereas a
Biden presidency would be better for pharma
what it could mean for US' relations with India.Navtej Sarna, who served as India's ambassador to the US, while speaking to German
Broadcaster DW, argued that a Harris victory would not really mean concessions to the India-US relationship
Sarna also told DW that the strategic logic of the India-US relationship is very strong, regardless of who wins the elections.TRUMP V/S
While the US president was attending gala events during his visit to India in February, riots broke out in Delhi that left over 50 people
dead.While Trump has hobnobbed with authoritarian leaders like Kim Jong Un, Biden had expressed disappointment with the Indian government
over its new citizenship law and called for the restoration of the rights of Kashmiris after the abrogation of Article 370 and Article 35A
in August 2019.While Harris did not take a definitive stand on either of these issues during the campaign trail
New-Delhi based academic, in the past said that Harris' commitment to human rights and her sense of justice is due to the influence of her
mother and maternal grandfather.He had also expressed confidence that Harris would not let her Indian heritage influence her stand on human
