Sen. Kamala Harris Tapped as Biden Running Mate

Presumptive Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden has tapped California Senator Kamala Harris to be his vice presidential running mate. 

He announced the pick on Twitter: 

[embed]https://twitter.com/JoeBiden/status/1293280411150217219[/embed]

She is the first black woman to be on a major party's presidential ticket. Biden had promised it would be a woman, but he was getting pressure given the George Floyd moment for reflection on racial inequality to make it a moment about a singular woman of color as well.

Harris had run against Biden for the top of the ticket, but eventually dropped out.

Harris is very familiar to the communications policy community, both as a senator from California and as the attorney general of the state.  

As a senator, Harris has been a big critic of the FCC's decision to deregulate internet access service in the Restoring Internet Freedom order. 

Related: Kamala Harris Introduces Government Tech Bill

She has also pushed for distance learning dollars during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

As attorney general, Harris helped secure a $33 million settlement with Comcast related to its VoIP service and consumer privacy.  

Harris, the daughter of immigrants, got her undergraduate degree from Howard University and her law degree from the University of California.

Harris began her legal career in the Alameda County District Attorney's Office. She was named District Attorney of the City and County of San Francisco and was subsequently elected as the first African-American and first woman to be California attorney general. She was elected senator in 2017. 

TechNet president Linda Moore points out that, if elected, Harris would be the first female, first African-American, and first South Asian-American to become Vice President.  

“TechNet has worked with Senator Harris since her days as California Attorney General, and we know her to be a person of great intellect, integrity, and ability who fights for those who need a strong voice for justice," said Moore. "Vice President Biden has chosen a proven leader with a record of protecting people against inequality and exploitation." 

John Eggerton

Contributing editor John Eggerton has been an editor and/or writer on media regulation, legislation and policy for over four decades, including covering the FCC, FTC, Congress, the major media trade associations, and the federal courts. In addition to Multichannel News and Broadcasting + Cable, his work has appeared in Radio World, TV Technology, TV Fax, This Week in Consumer Electronics, Variety and the Encyclopedia Britannica.