Kamala Harris' ex-adviser urges Indian-Americans to back Democrats, hints at 2028 run

In an exclusive interview with India Today, Opal Vadhan, who served as a senior adviser to the former US Vice President, said Kamala Harris had publicly indicated that she was thinking about another White House bid.

Former US Vice President Kamala Harris is considering another presidential run in 2028, her former senior adviser and close aide, Opal Vadhan, has said, while urging Indian-American voters to make their voices heard in the upcoming US midterm elections and question whether the Republican administration is working in their interests.

In an exclusive interview with India Today, Vadhan, who served as a senior adviser to Harris, said the former Vice-President had publicly indicated that she was thinking about another White House bid.

"Well, once again, you know, the vice president is public about it. She's thinking about it, and that is her decision to make," Vadhan said when asked whether Harris had discussed exploring a 2028 presidential campaign.

Vadhan added that, in her personal view, Harris "would be the best president", while stressing that the decision rested with the former Vice-President.

The interview comes ahead of the US midterm elections, in which all 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 35 of the 100 Senate seats are up for grabs. Vadhan said affordability, rising living costs and dissatisfaction with the government's policies were among the key issues driving voters.

"Your government should be working for you. And right now, people do not feel that way," she said, pointing to high fuel prices, expensive groceries, rising rents and healthcare premiums.

"Affordability is what's on the ballot," she said, adding that more than 50 million people had already voted early in the midterm elections.

OPAL VADHAN'S APPEAL TO INDIAN AMERICAN VOTERS

Vadhan, whose parents immigrated to the US from India, urged South Asian and Indian-American voters, including those who backed Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election, to reconsider whether the current administration was serving their interests. She said she had family members, including aunts and uncles, who voted for Trump in 2024 and that she had spoken to them about their political choices.

"They say, oh, it's because of my taxes. Well, my thing back to them is, do your taxes even matter if they don't want you in this country?" she said.

Vadhan cited concerns over anti-South Asian sentiment, immigration policies and the proposed USD 100,000 H-1B visa fee as issues that Indian-American voters should consider.

She also referred to controversial social media posts and incidents that, according to her, had contributed to a sense of hostility towards South Asians in the US.

"I say to the South Asian voters, A, is this government working for you? Do you really believe, do your taxes matter if, you know, they don't want you in this country?" she said.

Vadhan urged Indian-American voters to participate in the elections and make their concerns heard. "We are a voting bloc and we have to really let our government know what we want from them," she said.

OPAL VADHAN HOPES DEMOCRATS WILL FLIP HOUSE AND SENATE

Vadhan expressed hope that Democrats would win control of both chambers of Congress in the midterm elections, saying voters had an opportunity to hold the administration accountable.

"I think the voters will make their voices heard and I'm hopeful that we will flip the House and Senate," she said. She argued that the cost of living and access to healthcare would remain central to voters' decisions.

"People shouldn't have to decide whether they should buy groceries this month or send their kid to the doctor because it's too expensive," she said.

Vadhan said Democrats would focus on lowering costs, making homeownership more accessible and ensuring that people could afford education and healthcare. She added that the party needed to communicate its policies more effectively and convince voters that the American dream remained within reach.

FROM HILLARY CLINTON'S CAMPAIGN TO KAMALA HARRIS' INNER CIRCLE

A first-generation Indian-American raised in Queens, New York, Vadhan has worked with several prominent Democratic leaders. She began her political career as an intern in Barack Obama's administration before joining Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign.

She subsequently worked with Clinton as her executive assistant and trip director from 2017 to 2021. In 2021, she joined the Biden-Harris administration as a special assistant to the President and personal aide to Vice President Harris.

Vadhan was also part of Harris' team during the 107-day presidential campaign in 2024. Recalling the day Harris announced her presidential bid following Joe Biden's withdrawal from the race, Vadhan said she had been called to the Vice President's residence on July 21, 2024, without knowing what was about to happen.

She described her experience working with Harris as an opportunity to witness history, particularly as the daughter of Indian immigrants who went on to work for the first Black and South Asian woman Vice President of the United States. "That is the American dream. And that is what I want your viewers to know is that it's still real," she said.