Kamala Harris’s ancestral Indian village prays for her victory in White House race after Biden bows out
RESIDENTS of the ancestral Indian village of Kamala Harris are now praying for her victory in the ultimate race to the White House.
Locals were seen holding special prayer ceremonies for the current US vice president who is now one step closer to securing a Democratic party nomination for the presidential elections.
The residents of Painganadu-Thulasendrapuram, the village from which Harris’ grandfather hailed, conducted pooja – a sacred Indian ceremony seeking blessings from god.
Pictures show local villagers dressed up in traditional attire offering prayers to Hindu gods and goddesses.
It is understood the prayer ceremonies will continue until the Democratic Party formally announces Harris as the official presidential candidate for the November election.
One resident of the village told local media: “We are overjoyed that Kamala Harris, the granddaughter of P V Gopalan, is most likely to be the US Presidential candidate.
“We offered prayers to the mighty temple deity.”
Massive festival-like celebrations also took place in 2021 when Harris became the US vice president alongside Biden.
Calendars featuring the faces of Biden and Harris have been distributed throughout the village.
Firecrackers were burnt and the entire village was decorated with lights.
Harris was born to an Indian mother and a Jamaican father, both of whom immigrated to the United States to study.
She visited her ancestral village for the first time when she was five – and had called walks with her grandfather on the beach in Chennai.
Excited local villagers are now hoping to see Kamala take over the Oval Office after she is endorsed as a nominee for the Democratic party ticket.
Biden endorsed Harris as the next democratic candidate after dropping out of the election race.
The president, 81, made his stunning announcement in a letter posted to X on Sunday, revealing that he would not be seeking reelection in November.
He wrote: “It has been the greatest honour of my life to serve as your President.
“And while it has been my intention to seek reelection, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term.”
Harris is now one step closer to becoming the new Democratic nominee after raising a record amount for her party.
She has raised more than $81 million in donations in just 24 hours.
She will also inherit around $91 million in leftover campaign funds donated to her joint ticket with Mr Biden.
She will also inherit around $91 million in leftover campaign funds donated to her joint ticket with Mr Biden.
Several of her potential rivals and influential former Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi also got behind Harris.
Pelosi, a major powerbroker in the party, broke her silence to back Ms Harris on Monday.
She said she had “limitless optimism for our country’s future” under a Harris administration and described her as a “champion for working families” and abortion rights.
Governors Gavin Newsom and Gretchen Whitmer, whose names were rumoured to be on the list of potential presidential candidates, have also endorsed Harris’ campaign.
A survey of delegates by the Associated Press found that Harris has the backing of at least 2,214 Democratic delegates, more than the 1,976 she would need in the first round of voting at the party’s convention next month.
The AP survey is only an indication that she has the backing of enough delegates.
What happens next?
JOE Biden has finally heeded calls to drop his bid for re-election, throwing the 2024 election into chaos.
He has endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris but naming a new Democratic nominee won’t be a simple process.
Here’s what’s next after Biden’s stunning announcement.
Biden secured nearly 4,000 delegates by winning state caucuses and primaries earlier this year. He was set to officially be named the Democratic nominee at a virtual vote ahead of the Democratic National Convention, which begins on August 19.
Democratic party rules don’t allow Biden to simply pass his 3,896 delegates to Harris or another candidate.
Harris will now have to convince those nearly 4,000 delegates and 700 superdelegates to support her and name her nominee.
However, delegates are free agents who can choose to support whichever candidate they want – likely without input from voters at this stage since primaries and caucuses were already held.
All eyes are now on the previously planned virtual vote – where the Democratic party could choose a nominee before the DNC begins.
Biden’s endorsement of Harris will likely sway delegates and no one has publicly challenged her as a candidate – but delegates are not required to back her. Even if the virtual vote isn’t held, the party could still choose Harris or another candidate before the convention.
If Democrats don’t name their nominee before the DNC, it’ll be the first open and contested convention since 1968.