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The Mixed Reaction To Sen. Kamala Harris’ Selection

Presumptive Democratic vice presidential nominee, U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris listens as presumptive Democratic presidential nominee former Vice President Joe Biden speaks following a coronavirus briefing with health experts at the Hotel DuPont in Wilmington, Delaware.
Presumptive Democratic vice presidential nominee, U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris listens as presumptive Democratic presidential nominee former Vice President Joe Biden speaks following a coronavirus briefing with health experts at the Hotel DuPont in Wilmington, Delaware.

By now you’ve probably heard that Joe Biden has picked California Sen. Kamala Harris to be his running mate. And a number of Democratic voters are pretty happy about it. But the response to Harris hasn’t been all positive. 

Many progressive Democrats are critical of her prosecutorial background, especially amid national protest movements to defund law enforcement. And in a move that feels chillingly familiar, President Trump questioned her eligibility to run. These claims, like those against Barack Obama in 2008, are false.  

As the first Black woman, the first South Asian woman, and the first graduate of a historically Black university to appear on a major presidential ticket, Harris is unlike any candidate we’ve seen before. But this also means that the attacks on her identity are far from over.

We’ll talk about this and what her nomination means for the future of the Democratic party as we head into the first day of the Democratic Convention. 

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Haili Blassingame