WASHINGTON: Kamala Harris will likely become the first Black and Indian-American woman be a major party nominee for the White House after incumbent Joe Biden bowed out of the race and endorsed her candidacy.
Harris will have to be formally nominated by more than 3000 Democratic Party delegates in the days to come, but after Biden's endorsement, that is expected to be a shoo-in. It is unlikely that other party leaders who sought to ease Biden out will also oppose his political legatee.
Besides, Harris, as Biden's running mate, can more easily inherit campaign finances and logistics than other aspirants who may want to jump into the fray.
Harris is also likely to have the backing of Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and former President Barack Obama, the two other party grandees who worked behind the scenes to ease Biden out, although the former is reported to have suggested Harris go through an open convention to gain greater legitimacy.
In either case, a Trump v Harris 2024 clash for the White House sets up an unprecedented spectacle, given the former President's frequently irascible attitude towards women, particularly minority women.
Trump already seems to have anticipated Kamala Harris moving to top of the ticket by ramping up attacks against her. At a rally in Michigan on Saturday, he dubbed her "laffin' Kamala" and ridiculed the way she laughed, calling her "crazy."
"Kamala, I call her laughing Kamala. Have you seen her laughing? She is crazy. You can tell a lot by a laugh. She is nuts. She is not as crazy as Nancy Pelosi," Trump said with his ugly trademark sexism. His MAGA followers, many of them women, lapped it up.
Trump himself is seen as unhinged in Democratic circles but that does not seem to bother his millions of followers who worship him.