New York: More than 60 South Asian American state and local elected officials from across the US have endorsed Kamala Harris for the presidency, saying that as the daughter of an Indian immigrant mother, she will create a "fairer and more inclusive" immigration system.
They also said that the US Vice President's victory in the November 5 presidential election would send a powerful signal to all Asian Americans, communities of color, and women.
The officials joined the Indian American Impact in endorsing Harris, who is the 2024 Democratic candidate for President of the United States.
"As South Asian elected officials, we proudly support Kamala Harris in her historic bid to become the first South Asian American woman President of the United States,” the officials said in a statement issued by The Indian American Impact Fund, which is dedicated to promoting and elevating voices of Indian and South Asian Americans in the political and civic life of the United States.
"As the daughter of an Indian immigrant mother, Harris will also “create a fairer and more inclusive immigration system," the statement said, referring to Harris’s Chennai-born mother Shyamala Gopalan, a scientist who had moved to the US in the 1950s to pursue higher education.
"As an exceptional coalition builder, Harris possesses an extraordinary ability to unite our nation at a time when the stakes have never been higher,” it said.
The statement added that Harris’s victory in the November 5 election would send a powerful signal to all Asian Americans, communities of color, and women. “By helping so many reimagine what is possible, a President Kamala Harris would affirm that the American Dream isn’t just an aspiration, but an achievable reality.”
The officials extending their support to Harris include Lieutenant Governor of Maryland Aruna Katragadda Miller, Deputy Majority Leader, Washington State Senate Senator Manka Dhingra, North Carolina Senate Democratic Whip Jay J. Chaudhuri, New Jersey Senate Majority Conference Leader Vin Gopal and Virginia State Senator Ghazala Hashmi.
Other officials on the list are North Carolina State Senator Mujtaba A Mohammed, Georgia State Senator Sheikh Rahman, Vermont State Senator Kesha Ram Hinsdale, Pennsylvania State Senator Nikil Saval, Michigan State Senator Sam Singh, Virginia State Senator Suhas Subramanyam, New York State Senator Kevin Thomas, Texas State Representative Salman Bhojani, Montgomery County Commissioner Neil Makhija, Mayor of Cincinnati Aftab Pureval and City of Berkeley Councilmember Rashi Kesarwani.
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After days of speculation, former US President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle Obama have endorsed US Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic presidential nominee. In a tweet, Barack Obama said that he and his wife think that their "friend" Harris would make a "fantastic President of the United States".
"Earlier this week, Michelle and I called our friend Kamala Harris. We told her we think she'll make a fantastic President of the United States, and that she has our full support. At this critical moment for our country, we're going to do everything we can to make sure she wins in November. We hope you'll join us," Barack Obama tweeted with a clip capturing a phone call between the US Vice President and the Obamas.
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“Kamala Harris, with her Indian origin, brings an additional layer of excitement and support from the Indian-American community. As someone whose mother hailed from Chennai, India, Kamala Harris is not just a candidate but a symbol of hope and representation for over 4.4 million Indian Americans," Ajay Bhutoria, deputy national finance chair, 'Harris for President, 2024' said on Sunday. "This community, historically engaged and influential, is poised to be a margin of victory in key battleground states,” Bhutoria said in a statement.
On Sunday, the Harris campaign announced it had raised $200 million and had 170,000 volunteers signed in the first week of the campaign. “Harris has been a candidate for less than a week, but she’s already coalesced the entire Democratic Party around her campaign, and the organic, grassroots enthusiasm is producing results,” Bhutoria said. “From record-breaking fundraising to unprecedented crowds and volunteers pouring into field offices across the battlegrounds, Team Harris is fired up to elect the Vice President and defeat the extremist Trump-Vance ticket,” he said.
The momentum and energy for Harris is real – and so are the fundamentals of this race: this election will be very close and decided by a small number of voters in just a few states. “That’s why our campaign is harnessing the energy across the country for a weekend of action to mark 100 days out from the election (today!),” Bhutoria said. “Kamala Harris stands as a beacon of hope and leadership in a time when America is at a crossroads. Her candidacy represents a bold vision for the future, one that promises to strengthen democracy, protect reproductive rights, and create opportunities for every American to thrive," he said. "As we face a critical choice between a future built on progress and inclusion versus one driven by division and regression, Harris offers a compelling path forward,” Bhutoria said.
