Kamala Harris achieved whatever she wanted to, says aunt in Chennai
Kamala Harris is set to become the first woman, the first Black woman and the first woman of Indian heritage to become Vice President of the United States
FollowChennai: Happy and thrilled - that's how Kamala Harris' jubilant aunt, who lives in Chennai, felt moments after her niece's first address as the Vice President-elect of the United States; a speech in which Ms Harris paid tribute to "generations of women who fought and sacrificed for justice for all".
US Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris has achieved what she wanted to do, according to her maternal aunt Sarala Gopalan who lauded the Democrat for the poll victory.
"I am a doctor and I used to work in Chandigarh. Kamala has visited us a number times in Chandigarh and other places. We have always seen her (Kamala Harris) grow up as a good child. She was very good at whatever she did and she has achieved what she wanted to do," she said.
Dr Gopalan is the Chennai-based younger sister of Harris's mother, Shyamala Gopalan who was born in Chennai before she moved to the US for further studies. Shyamala was a leading cancer researcher and activist.
Dr Gopalan, whom Ms Harris fondly referred to in Tamil as "chithi (aunt)", while accepting the Democratic vice presidential nomination in August, had a simple message for her niece: "You've always been a hard worker. Keep it up".
She added that the family is joyous about Kamala Harris scripting history by becoming the first woman and the first Vice-President-elect who is an Indian-American.
Kamala Harris's maternal grandfather was born in Thulasenthirapuram, located about 320 km south of the city of Chennai. Shyamala was the daughter of PV Gopalan, a high-ranking civil servant.
The Democratic presidential candidate defeated President Donald Trump in a closely contested election and will be the 46th president of the United States.
In this, his third attempt at the White House, Biden, a four-decade Washington figure as a Senator and then a vice president, received more than 74 million votes, 4 million more than Trump, and more than any other presidential candidate.
