Will Kamala Harris Become the US’ First Black, Caribbean and Asian American President? Jamaicans Believe She Can

On August 1st, celebrated by Jamaicans as Emancipation Day, Jamaicans Marlon Hill and Delroy Redway were in different parts of the world but had United States vice president Kamala Harris on their minds. Hill, a lawyer and key figure in South Florida’s Jamaican community, was preparing to launch a campaign there for Harris, the unofficial Democratic nominee for US president.

De Facto Democratic presidential candidate, U.S. Vice President, Caribbean American Kamala Harris (Official White House photo)Redway was in Browns Town, Jamaica, the rural farming area in St. Ann parish where Harris’ father, Professor Donald Harris, was born and raised. An emeritus professor in economics at Stanford University, his family still has a presence there, through cousins who are involved in commerce and philanthropy. Harris’ mother Shyamala, who was from India, died in 2009 at age 70. She met Donald Harris while they were students at University of California, Berklee during the early 1960s. The vice president’s story, Hill noted, is part of what makes her appealing.

“It is one that many Jamaican and West Indian voters will connect to," he told Caribbean Today. "This family heritage will, at a minimum, inform her interaction with the Caribbean region and provide a basis of familiarity in proposing policies that may benefit the region, such as, immigration, small business development, climate resilience, trade development, among other issues."

At the time Hill spoke to Caribbean Today, various polls showed a tight race between the 59-year-old US Veep and former president Donald J. Trump, the Republican nominee. They show customary swing states of Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Michigan, Nevada and Florida as toss-ups.

Hill is part of a Caribbean Diaspora team that has supported Harris since President Joe Biden announced on July 21st that he would not seek re-election and endorsed her as his successor.Professor Donald Harris, Kamala Harris' father, was born in Browns Town, Jamaica in 1938. (Wikipedia image)

“On August 1st, Emancipation Day, we (hosted) a national call with Caribbean-American leaders to engage and inspire voters to donate, volunteer and prepare their voting plan. At the end of the day, this will be a race of Olympic proportions for the office of the presidency,” he said.

Jamaican Dale Holness, former mayor of Broward County, is also part of a team aggressively campaigning for Harris in South Florida. “Everybody is excited and ready to go to work. There has been a groundswell of support among Jamaicans and other Caribbean nationals, with people calling friends and family members and getting them involved in the campaign,” he said. “Based on reactions that I have seen, there is a momentum building with the Jamaican and Caribbean communities for the Harris for President campaign.”

Redway, 74, has known the Harris family since his childhood. He recalls Donald being one of three brothers - the others being Newton and Reginald, who made their living from quarry mining, cattle farming and a bakery. Sherman, Donald’s nephew, operates a block-making business in Browns Town.

A former councilor, the Jamaican equivalent of a Congressman, Redway has never met Donald Harris, but recalls hearing stories of him visiting Browns Town with his two daughters, Kamala and Maya. He described the mood in the community of 20,000 as excited.

“They are confident that she will make it through to be president, we are rooting for her," Redway stated. "For Brown’s Town, it would be a vindication that although we are a small community, we are united when it comes to seeing one of our own advance in life. Browns Town is an example of that."

Hill has been a lawyer for 30 years and seen his share of political campaigns. Prior to Harris’ emergence, the most significant of those was in 2008 when a little-known senator from Chicago named Barack Obama was elected the first black president of the United States. He is determined to help make Kamala Harris the first female leader of the country.

“There are some similarities, but they have different stories, and this is definitely a unique moment in time and history,” said Hill. "Voters are in a different mindset and most are not interested in going back but looking forward to a future of stability and unity. We will know on the night of November 5th."

A new national survey by Florida Atlantic University and Mainstreet Research USA reveals that U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and former U.S. President Donald Trump are in a statistical tie in a 2024 presidential election matchup. The poll also highlights complex views on democracy among American voters.

Harris and Trump are both at 46% among all voters in the latest Florida Atlantic University Political Communication and Public Opinion Research Lab (PolCom Lab) and Mainstreet Research USA poll. Diving into key demographic groups reveals striking differences:

• Harris holds a strong lead among women with 49% compared to Trump’s 42%.
• Among Black voters, Harris commands a significant advantage at 67%, while Trump trails at 22%.
• In the Hispanic demographic, Harris secures 54% support, leaving Trump with 37%.
• Trump leads with 18 to 35-year-old voters, 45% to 36%.
• When Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. is included, Harris has a 1% lead among all voters, which is within the margin of error.

“While voters may be responding to the prospect of a new candidate in these results, they are also not sure what the Harris campaign messaging is,” said Luzmarina Garcia Ph.D., assistant professor of political science at FAU. “But the lead up to the election will clarify that picture.”