Away from the spotlight, Maya Harris has been working for years to support her sister Kamala’s political career. The 57-year-old lawyer has a rich experience, including collaborating with Hillary Clinton.
„We need this leadership at this historic moment” – on August 22, at the Democratic Convention podium, Maya Harris introduced and gave a standing ovation to her two-year-older sister, Kamala, who had just entered the race for the White House.
It was an unprecedented moment in the career of this 57-year-old woman, accustomed to staying in the shadows of power corridors, TF1 reports.
A lawyer, activist, political advisor, Kamala Harris's younger sister has several strings to her bow. She and her sister became close at a very young age. The two girls grew up in Oakland, in the progressive California of the 1960s, alongside their immigrant parents. Their father was an economics professor, and their mother - now deceased - was a breast cancer researcher.
Mother at 17
In Oakland, Kamala Harris grew up proud of her immigrant parents' fight for civil rights.
When Kamala was nine, the two sisters left California and moved to Montreal after their parents separated. The change of scenery was radical.
"The idea of leaving sunny California in February, in the middle of the school year, for a French-speaking foreign city covered in 12 feet of snow was daunting," Kamala Harris recounted in her memoirs published in 2019.
Another event that brought the family closer was Maya's pregnancy, becoming a mother at the age of 17. It was an episode the Harris family spoke very little about, but it brought the two sisters even closer.
The early discovery of motherhood did not hinder Maya's career, who studied at Howard University, founded in Washington to admit African-American students during the segregation era. She joined the "Alpha Kappa Alpha" black student association before a rapid professional ascent. She graduated from Stanford at the age of 29, becoming the youngest dean of a law school in the United States.
A Bobby Kennedy for Kamala
A lawyer, law professor in San Francisco, young Maya is present on all fronts. She also joined the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Northern California, specializing in defending minorities and civil rights.
In parallel with her legal career, Maya Harris got involved in politics in 2003 to help her sister who aspired to become a prosecutor in San Francisco.
But the real turning point came in 2016 when Hillary Clinton hired her for her presidential campaign.
Despite the defeat of the Democratic camp, she worked again in 2019, this time for Kamala, who entered the race for the Democratic primary elections. It was a failure. "She was too present, not allowing other campaign team members to express themselves," explained Alexis Buisson, the author of a biography of Kamala Harris.
In 2024, although she does not hold an official position in the campaign structure, Maya Harris is still present. The American press has nicknamed her a "Bobby Kennedy for Kamala," referring to the relationship between Robert F. Kennedy and his brother John F. Kennedy.
"Maya lives between California and New York with her husband, has a phenomenal daughter, and spends every spare minute with her two perfect granddaughters" - as stated in the conclusion of the biography posted on her website, mayaharris.com.