If Ms Kamala Harris gets the Democratic party nomination next month to run for the United States presidency, it will be a historic and meaningful moment for every Indian, said Hindi literature professor Shivaji Shinde.
“The United States is the most powerful country in the world. If they choose an Indian-origin person as their president, then it will be a huge moment for India and every Indian would be immensely proud,” he said in New Delhi on Tuesday.
Already, people in Thulasendrapuram, a village in Tamil Nadu where her mother’s family once lived, are celebrating, reported AFP. Resident Sudhakar Jayaraman said villagers performed prayers at the local temple, which Ms Harris and her grandfather once donated to, after they heard the news.
“We’re overjoyed to know that someone who traces her ancestry to our village might become the president of the United States,” Mr Jayaraman said.
However, while Ms Harris works to become the Democratic nominee after President Joe Biden ended his campaign, reactions across other parts in India have been rather muted in comparison. While there is pride, many believe she has preferred to emphasise her Jamaican heritage throughout her vice-presidency.
Her father was born in Jamaica and she prefers to project herself as Black, only deploying stories of her ties to India at key moments – at times light-heartedly.
In June last year, when Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a state visit to Washington, Ms Harris spoke emotionally about her ties to her late mother Shyamala Gopalan’s country of birth.
She credited her grandfather P.V. Gopalan, who was a civil servant, with teaching her about what democracy means as they walked hand-in-hand on a beach in his home state of Tamil Nadu.
These lessons, she said, “first inspired my interest in public service… and have guided me ever since”.
She also talked about her mother’s influence – and how she discovered her “love of good idli”.
But, beyond a smattering of references, analysts say Ms Harris hasn’t tapped her Indian identity heavily.
Still, if she becomes the Democratic nominee to fight against the Republican party’s Donald Trump, it would be a first for a South Asian American – and a sign of just how far the diaspora has come in the US.
Ms Harris and a slew of other political personalities with roots in India – from Ms Nikki Haley and Mr Vivek Ramaswamy to Ms Usha Vance – have become household names in the US, and their rise has put a spotlight on India, beyond the cliches of Bollywood and butter chicken.
But for Ms Harris, it is important to get the backing of Indian-Americans as she aims to become the US president in an extremely tight presidential race, noted American website Axios.
Democrats saw Black and Asian-American voting blocs’ enthusiasm wane when President Biden was at the top of the Democratic ticket.
Mr Trump himself has tried to court Black and Hispanic voters this year, but he remains extremely unpopular among those demographics.
A recent Asian-American voter survey found that while 46 per cent of the demographic would vote for Mr Biden versus 31 per cent for Trump, it’s still eight points lower than the 54 per cent who favoured Mr Biden in 2020.
The first Reuters/Ipsos poll since Ms Harris took Mr Biden’s mantle has her leading Trump 44 per cent to 42 among all voters in a head-to-head race, but she still has much to do to get the Blacks’ and Indian-Americans’ support.
Among the Indian-Americans – and more broadly Asian-American – her candidacy has sparked excitement, Prof Pawan Dhingra, a professor of American studies at Amherst College in Massachusetts, told Axios.
“Enthusiasm about her candidacy is higher now than in 2019, as voters have gotten to know her as vice-president,” he said. “But her support among Asian-American voters isn’t to be taken for granted.
“She has to talk about the issues that all Americans care about, but in a way that connects with Asian Americans. And then she also has to clarify her stance on certain foreign policy issues that matter to Asian-Americans, like America’s relationship with India.”
In a way, her possible nomination appears to have galvanised the Indian-American community, which can see in her a symbol of their success and an opportunity to have American politics reflect the diversity of its society.
Within a day of Ms Harris entering the race, the segment of the Indian-American community that leans Democrat has been quick on its feet in mobilising support for her, reported the Hindustan Times.
Indian American Impact Fund, a key political outfit that has supported 116 Indian-American candidates and raised US$20 million in the last eight years to elevate the community’s political representation, endorsed Ms Harris on Sunday.
Impact’s co-founder Deepak Raj said: “We are ready to leverage our extensive network of resources to mobilise South Asian voters, confident that they will be instrumental in delivering the White House to Kamala Harris in November.”
Mr Shekar Narasimhan, the chairman and founder of the AAPI Victory Fund, which supports Asian American candidates, also vouched for Ms Harris’s competence and qualifications.
He hailed her for recognising the importance of community, diversity and standing up against hate crimes.
Referring to those who sometimes criticise Ms Harris for not owning up to her Indian identity more, Mr Narasimhan said: “She talks about her heritage and that’s enough. Does she have to eat idli, dosa always to be Indian? What does that even mean?”
