Who Is Kamala Harris' Best Friend? Here's What We Know

Vice President Kamala Harris's presidential campaign has generated substantial support across the United States following the presidential debate with Donald Trump. As the 2024 presidential election looms, U.S. citizens continue to dig deeper into the former attorney's background and, in the process, have identified Harris' closest friends, including one of her oldest pals, Wanda Kagan. Harris met Kagan as a teenager and became fast friends due to shared experiences. "We were both from biracial families in a new school," Kagan told ABC 7. "We were trying to find our way, so the easiest way was finding it together."

The Democratic candidate met Kagan in Canada, where she spent much of her adolescence in the city of Montreal, Québec. The California native moved to Canada after Harris' parents separated, and she attended Westmount High School up until her graduation in 1981. She then returned to the U.S. for university, which kickstarted Harris' impressive career before politics. Of all the ways Kamala Harris has made history so far, her role in Wanda Kagan's life is certainly one of the most inspiring, and it all began with a grim confession.

While attending Westmount High, Kamala Harris learned her best friend was being abused by her stepfather. "I was going through a very abusive and sexually abusive and physically abusive situation at home," Kagan told Fox 5. "[Kamala] knew something was wrong, and I told her when I was in high school. I went to stay with her, and her mom and her sister, and her mom helped navigate me through different things of the system."

In high school, I found out my best friend was being molested by her father. One of the reasons I wanted to be a prosecutor was to protect people like her. pic.twitter.com/R51wTtVUAo

— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) September 23, 2020

This moment would become a transformative experience for Harris, and she has said as much in past interviews. "One of the reasons I wanted to be a prosecutor was to protect people like her," said Harris in a video posted on X, formerly known as Twitter. Kagan's traumatic circumstances marked a vital shift in Harris' life, fueling her lifelong mission of protecting vulnerable women and children.

Although the pair lost touch after graduating high school, they reunited in 2005 after Kagan spotted her on an episode of "The Oprah Winfrey Show." Kagan went on to become a philanthropist and public speaker. She also named her daughter after Harris' sister, Maya. "What I want people to know and America to know is that they are getting the true Kamala," said Kagan to ABC 7. "They are getting an amazing person who is going to fight for rights in the country and bring unity back, which is what we could use right now."

If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, help is available. Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).