Kamala Harris Announces She Will Run for President in 2020
California senator and former state attorney general Kamala Harris became the latest Democratic candidate to announce their intent to challenge Donald Trump’s second term when she announced on Monday, January 21, that she is running for president in 2020.
“Truth. Justice. Decency. Equality. Freedom. Democracy. These aren’t just words — they’re the values we as Americans cherish. And they’re all on the line now,” Harris said in a video posted to social media on Monday morning. “The future of our country depends on you and millions of others lifting our voices to fight for our American values. That’s why I’m running for President of the United States.”
Harris also appeared on Good Morning America to announce her campaign, saying that she timed the announcement to coincide with Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a holiday to honor the civil rights leader and movement. “I’m honored to be able to make my announcement on the day that we commemorate [King],” she said.
Should Harris secure the Democratic nomination, she would be the first African-American woman to be a major party nominee for the presidency. According to NPR, Harris’ campaign logo is a nod to the one used by fellow trailblazer Shirley Chisholm, who, in 1972, became the first Black woman to run for the Democratic party’s nomination for president. Illinois senator Carol Moseley Braun also ran in 2004.
Harris has pursued a progressive agenda in her time in politics, fighting for LGBTQ+ rights as a prosecutor and famously standing up to Attorney General Jeff Sessions on the senate floor during the Russia hearings. She also recently was a major voice against the Supreme Court nomination of Brett Kavanaugh, releasing a statement slamming the “hasty and unjust” hearing following his confirmation.
Harris has been open about her potential presidential bid in the past, saying in early December that she planned to make a decision over the holidays with her family. She is the fourth high-profile woman to join the 2020 race, with Rep. Tulsi Gabbard and Democratic Senators Elizabeth Warren and Kirsten Gillibrand also recently announcing their plans.
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(photo via Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images)