Kamala Harris was the Biden campaign’s worst kept secret

India’s interest in the United States presidential elections this November just got a little stronger, if only symbolically, thanks to the Democratic nominee Joe Biden picking as his running mate Kamala Harris, a US Senator with Indian heritage.

A dozen years ago, as a young African-American rose to prominence in the nation’s political firmament, a retinue of other minorities gained enhanced profiles in his wake. That young biracial person was a certain Barack Obama, then the junior Senator from Illinois, who by January 2009 became the first African-American President of the United States. Among his early champions was Harris, another fledgling politician of mixed Indian and Jamaican heritage, who emerged as an articulate proponent of Obama’s positions on televised discussions, in a role described as that of a surrogate.

As Obama occupied the White House, there were rumours about Harris as a potential Attorney General. She had other ideas, and 12 years later, the course she opted for may have been correct: if Biden beats the incumbent Donald Trump, she will make history as the first African-American and first Indian-American, if not Asian-American, to become the US Vice-President.

If Biden is successful, she will also be the first woman ever to be part of a winning presidential ticket. If Democrat Hillary Clinton failed to win the presidency in 2016, Republican Sarah Palin tasted defeat on John McCain’s ticket, and Democrat Geraldine Ferraro was the running mate of Walter Mondale in 1984 in one of the most humiliating wipe-outs in recent American political history.

Harris’ political journey has been gradual, hardly one of meteoric proportions. She was elected San Francisco’s District Attorney, and later Attorney General of California, and to the chagrin of the Left-wing in her party, was a strong proponent of law enforcement. In once describing her as “by far the best-looking Attorney General in America”, Obama faced accusations of ugly sexism. Not that it hurt Harris, who climbed another rung in the ladder as she was elected to the US Senate in 2017.

When Obama was the presumptive presidential nominee of the Democrats in 2008, Joe Biden became his running mate, as the former sought to add centrist cred to his platform. Biden, who has had two miserable campaigns in the past for the nomination, succeeded this time and among those he bested was Harris, who was among the early favourites. Now, months after she exited the contest, Biden has picked her to give some heft to his attempt to oust Trump. Harris could well be expected to appeal to the liberal wing of the party, and, more importantly, to its most loyal demographic, African-Americans.

However, while Harris does embrace many of the mainstream positions of the Democrats, she is hardly a raving leftist, a reality that makes this ticket moderate and not necessarily one that will excite the far Left. Her role in supporting the police and increasing conviction rates for violent crimes in San Francisco and thereafter California, already makes her suspect in their eyes even though she did try and cast herself as a ‘progressive prosecutor’.

Biden and Harris will have to walk a tightrope in the current environment where American cities are beset by Black Lives Matter protests as well as several incidents of looting, and Trump has staked out a position as a resolute defender of law and order.

Harris’ connection to India is well-established. She, along with her sister Maya, was raised by their mother Shyamala Gopalan, and often visited Chennai, where among their shopping destinations was the saree emporium Nalli’s. On her mother’s death, she travelled to India for the immersion of her ashes.

Early in her career, Harris established contact with Indian-American lobbies and political action committees. While Harris’ stance on China, particularly condemnation of its human rights abuses, will gladden many in New Delhi, India should not expect her silence if it overreaches domestically, especially given its current dispensation.

The naming of Harris was possibly the worst kept secret of the Biden campaign. However, after four years of Trump, predictability may not necessarily be a negative for American voters.

With the casting call now complete, the ever-entertaining show that is the US presidential election is set to roll. Trump has never been known to watch his words while Biden has a longstanding reputation as a prolific gaffe generator. It could be up to their running mates — Vice President Mike Pence and Kamala Harris — to inject some gravitas into the coming race.

Anirudh Bhattacharyya, a Toronto-based columnist and commentator on North American issues, has covered US Presidential elections since 2004. Twitter: @anirudhb. Views are personal.