Indian-American Kamala Harris creates history, wins U.S. Senate seat

Updated - December 04, 2021 11:00 pm IST

Published - November 09, 2016 11:23 am IST - New York

A file photo of California Attorney General Kamala Harris.

A file photo of California Attorney General Kamala Harris.

California’s Attorney General Kamala Harris on Wednesday scripted history as she won the U.S. Senate seat from the state, becoming the first Indian-American to achieve the feat.

Ms. Harris, 51, who defeated fellow Democrat Loretta Sanchez, is also the sixth black individual to be elected to the U.S. Senate. U.S. President Barack Obama was the fifth black elected Senator.

She is the first black woman elected to the upper chamber in more than two decades.

Her mother Shyamala Gopalan came to the U.S. from Chennai to study science, specifically endocrinology and complex mechanisms of cancer.

Her father Donald grew up in Jamaica, where he became a national scholar and earned the opportunity to study economics.

Ms. Kamala Harris was born in Oakland, California. A two-term Attorney General of California, Ms. Harris defeated Ms. L Sanchez from her own party.

She would replace Barbara Boxer who announced her retirement in 2014 after serving more than two decades in the Senate.

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