WASHINGTON -- U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris could become the first woman of color nominated by a major party for the presidency after her boss, President Joe Biden, bowed out of the race as pressure mounted following a debate last month that raised questions about his age, acuity, and ability to win a second term.
Biden made the announcement on July 21, saying he was stepping aside "in the best interest of my party and the country" and endorsing Harris to be the new Democratic candidate for November's election.
Harris, 59, could sew up the Democratic nomination at the party's August 19-21 convention in Chicago if enough delegates agree to transfer their votes from Biden to her, a development that would be unprecedented in modern U.S. presidential politics.
She is the favorite to become the nominee, although much remains uncertain and other candidates could throw their hats in the ring.
Harris's nomination would transform a race that was shaping up to be a rematch between Biden and Republican nominee Donald Trump, even as many Americans clamored for someone new. Her entry could also bring policy and track records back to the forefront of a contest that has been dominated by intense scrutiny of Biden's fitness -- and his ability to win defeat Trump -- after he spoke incoherently and appeared confused during their June 27 debate.
Biden's performance led to persistent calls from top congressional Democrats and donors for him to withdraw from the campaign.
Harris would enter the high-stakes race about neck-and-neck with Trump, with issues including immigration reform, abortion rights, and aid to Ukraine for its defense against Russia hanging in the balance. Undecided voters in swing states such as Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin could potentially determine who wins.
As they focus their time and energy on those crucial states, Trump will likely attack Harris's work on immigration and paint her as a representative of the Democratic Party's "radical left."
Harris, in turn, may focus on the administration's achievements over the past four years, including strong job growth, a reduction in prescription prices, and student debt forgiveness.
She is also likely to focus on her attempts to protect voting and abortion rights. As president from 2017 to 2021, Trump tipped the nine-member Supreme Court to the right with three conservative nominees. In a landmark decision two years ago, the court overturned Roe v. Wade, a 1973 ruling recognizing abortion as a constitutional right.
Harris is also likely to attack Trump's criminal history and present him as politician unworthy of the nation's highest office. Trump was convicted by a jury in May of forging financial records and is due to be sentenced later this year, though it is highly unlikely he will be imprisoned. Trump is also facing charges in two other cases, including one pertaining to the January 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, when he sought to overturn his 2020 election loss to Biden.
Democrats had been portraying Trump as a threat to democracy, including for egging on the rioters, but they may tone down their language -- at least in the short-term -- following the attempt on the Republican candidate's life this month.
In a hypothetical contest between Harris and Trump, polls have been inconsistent, with some showing Harris slightly leading Trump and others showing her trailing.
Role At Ukraine Peace Summit
Biden tapped Harris to oversee diplomatic efforts with Latin American countries aimed at slowing the flow of migrants to the southern U.S. border. Upon taking office, Biden relaxed Trump-era immigration rules, triggering a flood of migrants across the border.
Harris focused on addressing the root causes of the problem -- such as poverty and lack of job opportunities in the home countries -- but faced criticism from the right and from some in her own party for taking weeks to visit the border.
Harris's portfolio also included protecting voting rights and reproductive rights. Following the Supreme Court decision that overturned Roe v. Wade, she traveled around the country in the run-up to the 2022 congressional elections to support Democratic candidates, promising to prioritize and protect abortion rights. Democrats fared better than expected in part as their base was galvanized by concern over the court's ruling.
As vice president, Harris has built up her foreign policy credentials, making more than a dozen overseas trips and meeting more than 150 world leaders. In June, she represented the United States at the Ukraine peace forum in Switzerland. However, she is still not perceived as an international statesman by voters, political analysts said.
Harris would have a chance to demonstrate her knowledge of foreign affairs -- a major topic in this election year amid wars in Ukraine and Gaza -- in a debate with Trump, potentially reshaping her image among voters. Her lack of deep international experience was one of several factors that hurt her 2020 bid for the Democratic presidential nomination.
Harris could gain votes by taking a different stance from the administration on some foreign policy issues, experts said. Biden had alienated part of the Democratic base -- in particular, young progressives -- with his pro-Israel policies, including sending arms to the country. Protests against the administration's support for Israel broke out around universities in the spring. Harris, who is not closely associated with the issue, could try to win some of them back with a more critical stance on the Israeli strikes in Gaza.
How Harris's gender and ethnicity will impact her chances in the 2024 election is unclear. While some Americans say the country is not ready for a woman president, Harris could potentially win back some black voters who have become disenchanted with the Democratic Party.
In Photos: The Life Of Kamala Harris
Daughter Of Immigrants
Kamala Devi Harris was born on October 20, 1964, to a well-educated family in Oakland, California, during a period of racial unrest in the United States.
Her mother, Shyamala Gopalan, was a biologist who had emigrated to the United States several years earlier from India to study at the prestigious University of California, Berkeley.
Her father, Donald Harris, moved to California from Jamaica in 1961 to study economics at Berkeley and went on to become a professor at Stanford, another top U.S. university.
The two met as civil rights activists at Berkeley. Harris was bused to school in a white neighborhood in California as a child before moving to Montreal with her mother and sister after her parents divorced.
Harris returned to the United States to study at Howard University, a historically black institution in Washington, D.C., graduating with a degree in political science and economics. She would go on law school at the University of California, graduating in 1989.
Harris quickly gained a name for herself in California's legal community, eventually defeating her boss in 2003 to become the district attorney of San Francisco. She would face law enforcement anger a year later when she refused to seek the death penalty for a gang member accused of murdering a police officer.
As district attorney from 2004 to 2011, Harris showed herself to be tough on crime, increasing the rate of convictions for felony and drug crimes. It was, in part, that record that enabled her to win election in 2010 as the attorney general of California.
One of her opponents in the 2020 Democratic primary race would criticize Harris for the number of people put behind bars for marijuana during her tenure as California's top prosecutor, when she herself admitted to trying the drug.
Recreational marijuana has since been legalized in California. After initial opposition, Harris came out in support of decriminalizing cannabis, which has become a key element in calls for national criminal-justice reform. Blacks are disproportionately convicted of marijuana crimes.
2020 Primary
Her six years as attorney general of the largest U.S. state by population coincided with racial unrest sparked by police shootings in states including New York and Missouri, leading to calls for reform in California.
Harris began offering bias training for state law enforcement but refused to support the mandatory use of body cameras, which can help clarify whether police force was justified.
She also angered progressives when she did not support a bill that would have required her office to investigate police shootings.
Following the death of George Floyd at the hands of police in Minnesota in May 2020, Harris tried to balance her position on law enforcement reform, saying the country needed to "reimagine" public safety while not explicitly backing calls by more progressive elements of the Democratic Party to "defund" the police.
Harris was elected to the U.S. Senate in November 2016, becoming only the second black woman in U.S. history to win a seat in the upper chamber of Congress.
She served on four Senate committees, including intelligence, budget, judiciary, as well as homeland security and government affairs, giving her some limited experience with foreign policy.
She was recognized for her tough Senate questioning of members of Trump's cabinet, most famously Attorneys General Jeff Sessions and William Barr, and of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.
If nominated, Harris would need to find a running mate who could complement her and win over key constituencies, especially those in the crucial swing states.
