Today, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris officially accepted the Democratic Party’s nomination for the 2024 presidential race, where she will face off against her Republican opponent, Donald Trump. She will become the first woman elected US president if she succeeds in winning the election in November this year. Ms Harris, a daughter of Jamaican and Indian origin, emerged as the Democratic candidate after President Joe Biden, 81, was forced to quit the race for the White House last month. In her speech, she sought to connect her background with the struggles and dreams of Americans – especially those who are poor or working class. She urged voters to elect a “strengthened, diverse and unified” government to ensure all Americans have an opportunity for success.
Ms Harris, the former California attorney general and state senator, aimed to win over moderate voters with her call for a progressive economic vision and a focus on inequality. She pledged to build an economy that “creates more jobs and pays higher wages” and promised to address the nation’s housing shortage. She also attacked the administration on foreign policy, promising to “stand strong with Ukraine” and accusing Mr Trump of aligning himself with autocratic leaders.
At the same time, Ms Harris sought to define herself more personally as she vowed to fight for the rights of women, Black people, and immigrants. She spoke about her mother, who taught her to “never do anything halfway” and emphasized the importance of working hard in America. She also recounted the experiences of pregnant women who suffered from sepsis and miscarriages, blaming Mr Trump’s administration for their pain and urging them to vote for her.
In her address, Ms Harris vowed to “rebuild the moral authority of the presidency” and called on voters to choose “a president who cares about our country’s children, not about his or her bottom line.” She said that the United States has never been more divided and that it is now up to Democrats to restore its values of compassion and fairness.
Ms Harris’s speech was criticized by some political analysts who felt she needed to deliver specific plans for her presidential term. Moreover, they argued that her mention of eating idlis and vadas did not resonate with Indian American voters. However, Shekar Narasimhan, chairman of the national Asian American and Pacific Islander advocacy group AAPI Victory Fund, disagreed with these criticisms. He told the Indian Express newspaper that mentioning idlis and vadas at Harris’ campaign events does not automatically equate to India being her priority. He added that he expected the Democratic nominee to engage with Indian American groups in the lead-up to the election to boost her popularity among Indians.