This story comes to you from Sahan Journal, a nonprofit newsroom dedicated to covering Minnesota’s immigrants and communities of color. Sign up for their free newsletter to receive stories in your inbox.
Minnesota voters of color and immigrant voters say they are cautiously optimistic about the potential Democratic presidential nomination of Vice President Kamala Harris. But they also say they want more details about her policies.
When President Joe Biden abruptly ended his campaign Sunday afternoon, he endorsed Harris as the next Democratic nominee. Harris, whose parents immigrated to the U.S. from India and Jamaica, quickly emerged as the front-runner for the Democratic nomination for president. She stands to make history as the first female president, the first Asian American president, and the second Black president. And she has just 107 days to run her campaign.
While the nomination won’t be official until August, no other Democrat has emerged to challenge Harris, who raised a record $81 million on the first day of her campaign. She’s since received endorsements from high-ranking Democrats such as former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Minnesota Gov.Tim Walz, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, and Representative Ilhan Omar.
Replacing Biden with Harris so close to the election is a move that some strategists hope will energize and mobilize voters of color. Will it work? Sahan Journal checked in with voters from communities of color in the Twin Cities, including Indian Americans in Eden Prairie and Black voters in the Rondo neighborhood of St. Paul, to learn more about how they are feeling about Biden’s exit and Harris stepping in to run for president.
Indian American voters hold mixed feelings
Srinivas Vuppula, the head chef at India Spice House in Eden Prairie, said he “100%” plans to vote for Kamala Harris. He supports her policies and alignment with Biden, but said that it doesn’t matter to him that she is part of the Indian American community.
“I like Kamala Harris and how she’s cooperated with Biden,” Vuppula said.
Sohil Goorha, a restaurant owner who lives in Eden Prairie, isn’t as sure. He said he’s currently an undecided voter.
“In the end what matters is what policies are important, what affects common people. I vote on policies that support the small business community,” Goorha said. “Ask the small business owners, ask the small guys. They don’t care about ethnicity and race. They care about taxes, they care about being able to stay alive.”
Amongst his friends and family, Goorha said many people in his community agree that Biden stepping down was a step in the right direction. But said he is still skeptical as to whether Harris will champion economic issues.
“They definitely feel that Biden retiring is a great thing,” Goorha said of his community. “Now you took the only factor that the Republicans were attacking the Democrats on — his age — out of the equation. So it does definitely open the game.”
Sayali Bongale, an Eden Prairie resident who moved to the U.S. in 2016, first noticed Harris during the confirmation hearings of Supreme Court Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh in 2018. She turned the TV on for just background noise, but was impressed by then-Senator Harris’ questions regarding abortion and women’s health.
“‘Do you know about any government rule about men’s bodies?’” Bongale remembered Harris asking. “He was not able to answer. I was really impressed.”
Bongale moved to the U.S. in 2016, three months before Donald Trump was elected president. She said she felt scared because, at the time, she was waiting to receive work authorization and thought Trump’s crackdown on immigration might pose a barrier.
Bongale said she hopes to see Harris address the strains on the immigration system, particularly the backlog in green card approvals and work visas.
“You rarely see someone of your skin color or Indian origin be on stage and come to that level, so I am (excited),” Bongale said. Despite her excitement, she added she has mixed feelings. “Because she comes from an immigrant background, it will be interesting. Because even though they are from those backgrounds, when they get that power, they don’t make any changes.”
Uncommitted campaign calls Biden’s exit ‘good news’
Asma Mohammed, the lead organizer of Uncommitted Minnesota, which mobilized 19% of Minnesota’s Democratic primary voters to cast a protest vote against Biden’s approach to the war in Gaza, said she had not seen a particular affinity for Harris from Indian Muslims.
“I don’t think they recognize her as one of our own at all,” she said.
Mohammed described Biden’s exit and endorsement of Harris as “good news.” She pointed to distinctions between Harris’ and Biden’s positions on Israel.
“Joe Biden was not going to engage with the anti-genocide crowd at all,” Mohammed said. “The difference now is that the vice president was at times making concessions to people who are supportive of Palestine and the Palestinian people. So I think that we have an opportunity here, and so does the vice president. It’s possible that we could win in November, if the vice president engages with our coalition of nearly a million voters who have said that they won’t stand for genocide.”
As an uncommitted delegate to the Democratic National Convention, Mohammed said she hoped for an open convention so that delegates could press the potential nominee on a permanent ceasefire and arms embargo against Israel.
“I think because Vice President Harris wants to win, is newly thrusted into the limelight, and also because she has clearly been a little bit better on Palestine, I think that she might be more open to accepting that Palestinians deserve to live,” Mohammed said.
‘A new level of hope’
Brittany Wright met Harris during a March visit to St. Paul focused on reproductive rights. Wright, a family wellness advocate, podcast host, and DJ and state employee, spoke to Sahan Journal in her personal capacity.
The 33-year-old mom almost died when giving birth to her 5-year-old daughter. Through her work at the Minnesota Children’s Cabinet, she helped advise the Biden/Harris administration on infant and maternal health. She had previously observed Harris as a background figure in the news, poised and diplomatic, she said. But in person, Wright saw a different side of her.
“It was kindness, it was warmth, and there was a level of depth in humanity that I just don’t feel like the media has done a great job of showcasing,” Wright said.
Wright and Harris both belong to historically Black sororities, which became an immediate point of connection, Wright said.
“She spoke to me like a sister or a family member,” she said. “She was so personable, and that was just really affirming to see: that you can make it to that level of government and still keep your humanity intact.”
Wright said she was shocked when she heard the news, and praised Biden as “selfless.”
“From a political standpoint, I felt an extreme sense of gratitude,” she said. “From a personal standpoint as a Black woman, as a woman of color, I felt incredibly proud and thankful that people are able to see just what we’re capable of in this moment.”
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Wright had planned to vote for Biden. But now that Harris is the likely nominee, she plans to be more engaged in the election, she said. Because of racism and sexism, the election might be more of an “uphill battle” for Harris, she said, so she felt a sense of responsibility to get more involved: organizing within her sorority, having conversations at the dinner table, or giving rides to the polls.
Wright said she hoped Harris would focus on the issues that voters care about, like the war in Gaza, criminal justice reform, health equity, student loans, and the economy.
“I think that there’s been a new level of hope and energy and optimism,” she said.
Rondo voters: ‘Anybody but Trump’
In the Rondo neighborhood in St. Paul, voters expressed a mix of caution and confidence in Harris — but many said they would vote for anyone over Trump.
“I wish her the best of luck,” said Ilka Bird, owner of Get Gorgeous Salon and Spa. “Too bad for Biden that he wasn’t going to be able to complete another term. Lucky Kamala, right place at the right time.”
Bird, though, said she needed more information about Harris. “As far as her views, I’m going to wait and see,” she said.
Around the corner at Hamburguesas El Gordo, Marta Mendez, the manager, said she thought Harris would be better than Trump.
“He don’t like the Latin people,” she said. “Any person is better than Trump.”
In front of Golden Thyme Presents, a business accelerator, a group of four friends sat on a stoop.
“She’ll be good,” said Bear Carter. “She was already smart, and she learned a lot from him,” he said, referring to Biden.
Carter was impressed that Harris raised so much money so quickly, though he said he’d heard from a lot of people upset that Biden dropped out. He said he worried that if Trump got into office, the country would fall into a depression.
His friend Dave Wiley derided Trump’s recent remarks about “Black jobs” and a “bloodbath” if he loses. Wiley said the “bloodbath” remark was a threat of a race war.
Harris had learned a lot in four years, he said, while Trump had not. He worried that Trump’s agenda for a second term, Project 2025, would “divide America.”
“I’d rather have anybody but Trump,” he said.
Editor’s note: This story was written by Becky Z. Dernbach, the education reporter for Sahan Journal, and Hibah Ansari, a reporter for Sahan Journal covering immigration and politics.
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