United States SenateCandidate for Senator

Kamala Harris knows that California and the nation are stronger today because of the generations of Americans who came to this country in search of a better life. She’s the daughter of immigrants and knows that embracing our diversity makes the fabric of our society stronger, our economy more innovative, and our community more inclusive.

Kamala believes that everyone should have access to public education, public health, and public safety regardless of their immigration status. As San Francisco District Attorney and now California’s Attorney General, she has fought for justice on behalf of immigrants who are targeted by criminals based on their immigration status. As Attorney General, she warned immigrants seeking drivers’ licenses against scammers, and she demanded thousands of hours of pro bono legal aid worth millions of dollars from the state’s largest and most powerful law firms for immigrant children and families caught in legal limbo.

In the U.S. Senate, Kamala Harris will fight for comprehensive immigration reform that creates a fair pathway to citizenship. She’ll work on behalf of DREAMers who know no other home than America, and she compassionately and responsibly welcomes those fleeing violence.

• Finally Pass Comprehensive Immigration Reform: Congress has repeatedly refused to pass comprehensive immigration reform that protects our borders and provides a fair and just pathway to citizenship. This failure has hurt our economy, made it harder for our businesses to compete in the global marketplace, and hamstrung local and state governments’ ability to meet the needs of their communities. Worse yet, Washington’s failure has forced more than 11 million undocumented immigrants to live, work, and raise a family in the shadows of our society. That’s unconscionable. Bringing these workers out of the shadows will strengthen the economy, grow the GDP, and reduce federal deficits and debt. Comprehensive immigration reform will increase productivity and wages. With comprehensive reform, all workers will benefit from protections in the workplace, and reform will spur innovation, entrepreneurship, and encourage job growth. Kamala will fight hard to pass immigration reform in Washington, and she will take on those who stand in the way.
• Protect President Obama’s Immigration Executive Actions: The only way to truly fix our immigration system is to pass comprehensive immigration reform, but the President’s recent executive actions offer some relief to millions of families living in our country. Kamala has fought to protect these actions as Attorney General, and in Washington, she will block attempts in Congress to dismantle them without action on comprehensive reform.
• DREAMing Of A Better Tomorrow: Over the last several decades, millions of undocumented children were brought to America by their parents and don’t know any country other than the United States as home. These young people want to fully participate in the American dream. Thanks to the President’s actions, many of them now have a temporary reprieve from the fear of deportation, but a more permanent solution is needed. Here in California, Kamala supported the California DREAM Act, which allows undocumented students to access financial aid at public universities and community colleges. In the Senate, Kamala will support a federal DREAM Act, which would create a fair pathway to citizenship for DREAMers who serve in the U.S. Armed Forces or graduated from high school and pursue higher education.
• Build Trust Between Immigrant Communities & Law Enforcement: Some criminals prey on immigrants, relying on them not to report crimes to law enforcement officers because of their immigration status – a prospect made all the more real by the failure to achieve comprehensive immigration reform. When criminals can get away with victimizing entire segments of the population, it makes all of us unsafe and weakens our society. Throughout her career as a prosecutor, Kamala has fought to bring these criminals to justice and to ensure that immigrants feel safe in their communities so they can report crimes. As Attorney General, she challenged federal policy that attempted to turn local law enforcement into de facto Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, and supported law enforcement to build relationships of trust with the communities they serve in order to improve public safety. In the Senate, Kamala will encourage law enforcement agencies both to strengthen protections for immigrants who report crimes without fear of deportation and to seek justice against criminals who target immigrants.
• Fighting Scams & Fraud That Target Immigrant Families: As Attorney General, Kamala has prosecuted scam artists and criminals who target immigrant families. She’s provided guidance to and warned consumers against unauthorized immigration consultants. In the Senate, she’ll continue fighting to protect immigrant communities and make sure immigrants, regardless of status, know they have access to our justice system.
• A Place Of Hope & Opportunity For Those Fleeing Oppression: Kamala believes that we have a moral obligation to responsibly resettle refugees who flee violence and oppression in their own countries. That’s why, as Attorney General, she brought together California’s top law firms and secured millions of dollars and thousands of hours worth of pro bono legal aid to help the unaccompanied minors fleeing violence in Central America in search of peace and stability in the United States. And now we should not turn our backs on those who are most harmed by ISIS. Kamala believes that we should responsibly resettle refugees who flee violence and oppression in their own country. We don’t have to sacrifice our compassion for our national security, and we shouldn’t let the violent images from Paris blind us to the images of the child who washed ashore on a Mediterranean beach. Refugees should rightly submit to the most rigorous background checks and screenings possible, and we should prioritize the most vulnerable refugees for admission – survivors of torture and violence, those with severe medical conditions, and women and children.
• Stop Wage Theft & Protect Immigrant Workers: Kamala believes strongly in the protection of workers’ rights for all Californians, regardless of immigration status. All individuals are eligible for minimum wage, workers’ compensation, and other workplace protections. As Attorney General, Kamala established and expanded the Underground Economy Unit within her Civil Rights Enforcement Section in order to increase enforcement of state worker protection laws. She filed suit and obtained more than $1 million from eight Northern and Southern California car washes that underpaid workers, denied rest and meal breaks, and created false records of time worked. She also has aggressively pursued litigation against a Southern California trucking company for misclassifying its employees as independent contractors so the company could avoid paying a minimum wage, workers compensation, and business expense reimbursements. Kamala’s prosecution of the case resulted in a landmark 2014 California Supreme Court decision that allows the state to hold accountable trucking companies for violations of state worker protection laws. As Senator, she will work hard to ensure that important workplace protections are strengthened and enforced, keeping our economy strong and the playing field level for all businesses.

Kamala Harris was raised by a family steeped in the Civil Rights Movement and has fought her entire career for justice for everyone – especially for those whose voices aren’t often heard by the people in power. From her first days as a prosecutor in Alameda County, to her work as San Francisco District Attorney, to her current service as Attorney General, Kamala has had one client – the People of California – and has time and again made a difference for California families.

Kamala has spent her entire career fighting for the voiceless and vulnerable in our society and against those who prey on them, and she’ll continue those fights in the Senate. She will stand up for a woman’s right to choose and equal pay for equal work, lead the charge against LGBT discrimination, work to pass comprehensive immigration reform, expand access to voting, and focus on fixing a broken criminal justice system.

From income inequality to education to criminal justice and beyond, far too often the color of our skin still determines our life chances. All of our sons and daughters, our sisters and brothers, deserve to be safe and sound – safe in their homes and safe if they’re walking down the street to buy a bag of Skittles. And we should guarantee a sound foundation of equal education and economic opportunity upon which young people will build their futures.

• Protect A Woman’s Right To Choose: Kamala Harris has been a champion for a woman’s right to choose and access to comprehensive reproductive health care throughout her entire career. When the U.S. Supreme Court took up important cases on women’s health, Kamala fought to require for-profit companies like Hobby Lobby to provide their employees with health insurance that covers contraceptives under the Affordable Care Act and to protect patients’ rights to access reproductive health clinics. Most recently, she sponsored legislation to ensure that crisis pregnancy centers provide women in California accurate information about the full range of reproductive services available to them elsewhere, including abortion. In the Senate, Kamala will lead the charge for women’s reproductive rights, defend Roe v. Wade, and fight against any attempt to defund reproductive health providers.
• Equal Pay For Equal Work: Every person regardless of gender deserves equal access to the American Dream. However, women still earn, on average, less than men for the same jobs. Nationally, women earn about 21 percent less than men, and the disparities are even more alarming for black women and Latinas. The majority of minimum wage workers are women, and reducing and eliminating this gap will help lift up millions of women and their entire families. In California, Kamala supported the Fair Pay Act, which prohibits employers from setting wages at rates lower than those of the opposite sex for similar work. In the Senate, she’ll make it a priority to pass the Paycheck Fairness Act and will be a leading voice for fairness in the workplace. Get more details on Kamala’s plans for creating economic opportunity for all.
• Stop Campus Sexual Assaults: Every student has the right to pursue an education in a safe environment. College campuses should be safe spaces, but unfortunately, about 1 in 5 women – as well as many men – report being the victims of sexual assault while in college. As Attorney General, Kamala brought together colleges and local law enforcement to create protocols for investigating and prosecuting sexual assaults, and has helped schools and law enforcement implement changes to California law to better protect survivors of sexual assault. She championed new technology to allow California to process rape kits faster and clear a longstanding backlog of rape kits in state crime labs. Throughout her career, she’s worked to ensure that survivors have the support they need and that their attackers face swift accountability and consequence for their crimes. Kamala will continue the fight against campus sexual assault in the Senate and push for improved support services for victims and a renewed focus on sexual assault prevention on college and secondary school campuses.
• End The Trafficking Of Women & Girls: Kamala has been a national leader in the fight against commercial sexual exploitation and human trafficking networks, which victimize and enslave poor and vulnerable women, girls, and boys. The United States has a moral and public safety obligation to end human trafficking at home and abroad. Kamala led a group of state attorneys general to Mexico to strengthen cooperation between the two countries to fight the money laundering that enables human trafficking, and she signed a bilateral accord with Mexico to improve coordination of law enforcement resources to target human traffickers. And in the U.S. Senate, she’ll continue that work to disrupt and dismantle human trafficking syndicates and be a voice for their victims. Learn more about Kamala’s approach to foreign policy.
• Combat Cyber Exploitation: Kamala has been a national leader in fighting cyber exploitation – too often mislabeled “revenge porn.” A 21st century form of violence against women that involves posting intimate images online without consent, cyber exploitation often results in significant harm to a victim’s personal and professional life and physical safety. As Attorney General, Kamala brought together major technology companies in a unique public-private partnership which resulted in the transformation of industry-wide standards to combat and prevent cyber exploitation. These transformative new standards empowered victims by giving them better tools to remove the images from the Internet. She also developed tools and training for law enforcement to investigate these crimes and help support victims. Kamala also prosecuted the first cyber exploitation website operator in the nation, resulting in a prison sentence for the defendant. In the Senate, Kamala will continue to be a leader in fighting cyber exploitation. Get more details about how she’ll use a “smart on crime” approach to criminal justice reform.

• End Discrimination Against The LGBT Community Nationwide: America has come a long way in recognizing marriage rights for same-sex couples. But in many places across the country, it’s still legal for businesses and institutions to discriminate against members of the LGBT community. In fact, in 31 states, a person can be fired or evicted simply because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Kamala was proud to lead the team that helped bring down California’s Proposition 8 at the U.S. Supreme Court and to fight for marriage equality nationwide, and she knows that there is much more work to do to achieve full equality for the LGBT community. In the Senate, Kamala will fight to include sexual orientation and gender identity as protected classes in the Civil Rights Act.
• Ban the “Gay/Trans Panic” Defense Nationally: As San Francisco District Attorney, Kamala was a national leader in fighting the “gay or trans panic” defense, a legal argument that it was OK for a person to commit murder or other violent crimes against an LGBT person because they “panicked” after discovering the victim’s sexual orientation or gender identity. Kamala sponsored the bill making California the first state to outlaw this defense, and in the Senate, she’ll fight to expand this work nationally.
• Ensure LGBT, Homeless, & Runaway Youth Have Access To Social Services: LGBT youth are far more likely to get kicked out of their homes and subsequently find themselves homeless without access to social services. LGBT youth are also particularly vulnerable to discrimination and bullying, which severely harms their health and well-being. These children often fall through the cracks of our social service system and don’t know that resources are available to help them. Even worse, some non-profit service providers block these children from accessing services underwritten by the federal government. Kamala will fight to stop this kind of discrimination and increase support for LGBT youth.

• Eliminate Obstacles To Voting: Voting is fundamental to our democratic society, but participation too often has been abysmal. Kamala believes that we must make it easier for everyone to vote, stop voter suppression, and zealously protect access to the ballot box for all Americans. She’ll work to strengthen protections against discriminatory laws, modernize voter registration systems, and expand early voting so everyone has ample opportunity to vote.
• Strengthen The Voting Rights Act: In 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court gutted a key section of the Voting Rights Act. In the Senate, Kamala will work to update and reinvigorate the vital protections of the Voting Rights Act and ensure that our fundamental rights are protected throughout the entire country.
• Reform The Broken Criminal Justice System: Kamala Harris has been a national leader in reforming the criminal justice system, challenging the false choice that we must either be “soft” or “tough” on crime, and instead focusing on how we can be smart on crime.
• Make Public Education More Equitable: Providing our children with a world-class education is the first rung of the ladder of opportunity and the first step to success in life. Unfortunately, too many schools lack the resources needed to meet the needs of each student, and too many children are left behind as a result. Success in school shouldn’t be decided by where students live, the color of their skin, their immigration status, or their parents’ income. Kamala is focused on eliminating disparities in our public education system, which will lead to greater community stability, economic growth and opportunity, and will put all of our children on a solid path to succeed.

• Finally Pass Comprehensive Immigration Reform: Congress has repeatedly refused to pass comprehensive immigration reform that protects our borders and provides a fair and just pathway to citizenship. That failure has hurt our economy, made it harder for our businesses to compete in the global marketplace, and hamstrung local and state governments’ ability to meet the needs of their communities. Worse yet, Washington’s failure has forced more than 11 million undocumented immigrants to live, work, and raise a family in the shadows of our society. That’s unconscionable. Bringing these workers out of the shadows will strengthen the economy, grow the GDP, and reduce federal deficits and debt. Comprehensive immigration reform will increase productivity and wages will rise, putting an additional $250 in the pockets of the median American household. With comprehensive reform, all workers will benefit from protections in the workplace, and reform will spur innovation, entrepreneurship, and encourage job growth. Kamala will fight hard to pass immigration reform in Washington, and she’ll take on those who stand in the way.
• Stand Up For Immigrants Regardless Of Status: As Attorney General, Kamala has made fighting for immigrant communities across our state one of her top priorities. She has taken on scammers who prey on immigrants and has worked to strengthen trust between immigrant communities and law enforcement. California has led the nation in expanding rights and opportunities for everyone, regardless of their immigration status, in health access, student loans, and more. She will continue to fight for the rights of California immigrants and their families, including workplace protections.

For far too many California families, the ladder of opportunity is broken. Incomes aren’t keeping up with increases in the cost of living, and the gap between the wealthy and the middle class is larger than at any time since the Great Depression.

Kamala believes income inequality is the defining economic challenge of our time. The minimum wage must be a living wage, and families should have tools they need to compete in the workforce – from affordable childcare and early childhood education to paid family leave and truly equal pay. Kamala will fight special interests that try to game the system or take advantage of working families, just as she’s taken on the big banks engaged in predatory lending practices, for-profit diploma mills, and big polluters as Attorney General. While some in Washington have voted to balance the budget on the backs of seniors, Kamala will oppose cuts to Social Security and Medicare, and believes we need to strengthen these safety nets.

But addressing income inequality is just one part of the solution. We also need to cultivate economic growth that creates real opportunity for California families and businesses. To that end, we must invest more in education – from early childhood through college and technical school – to ensure we spur entrepreneurship, fuel small businesses, and develop a workforce that meets the demands of employers in the 21st century.

California is the world’s eighth largest economy – a place that fosters so much innovation and growth. Washington needs to finally approve critical investments to our transportation infrastructure and support policies – like clean energy investments and passing comprehensive immigration reform – that allow entrepreneurs, creators, and small businesses to innovate, expand, and thrive.

• Paid Family & Sick Leave: America is the only industrialized country that doesn’t have a national paid family leave policy. That lack of flexibility leaves families to choose between taking care of themselves or a loved one, or putting food on the table. Kamala will fight for national paid family and sick leave that provides a safety net for working families.
• Raising The Minimum Wage: The federal minimum wage is far too low and makes it impossible to support a family. Kamala believes we need to make the minimum wage a living wage and tie it to inflation so Washington can’t keep playing politics with our economic security.
• Ending The Student Debt Crisis: The average student takes on tens of thousands of dollars in student loan debt. That’s not right. Kamala believes we must create pathways for college students to graduate on time and without a mountain of debt. She supports the President’s plan for making community colleges free, and she supports lowering the cost of college and allowing current borrowers to refinance at lower rates. Get more details about how Kamala will work to make higher education affordable for everyone.
• Strengthening Social Security & Medicare: Social Security and Medicare are the bedrock of our social contract. Together, these safety net programs keep millions of seniors and people living with disabilities out of poverty. While some in Washington have voted to balance the budget on the backs of seniors, Kamala would oppose cuts to Social Security and Medicare, and believes we need to strengthen these safety nets.
• Expand Pro-Work Tax Credits: Together the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and the Child Tax Credit (CTC) help keep millions of families from falling into poverty and enable many parents to afford childcare, which allows them to work and provide for their families. Kamala supports expanding these credits and the American Opportunity Tax Credit, which helps pay for college.
• Pass Paycheck Fairness: Every person, regardless of gender, deserves equal access to the American dream. However, women still earn, on average, less than men for the same jobs. Nationally, women earn about 21 percent less than men, and the disparities are even more alarming for black women and Latinas. The majority of minimum wage workers are women, and reducing and eliminating this gap will help lift up millions of women and their entire families. In California, Kamala supported the Fair Pay Act, which prohibits employers from setting wages at rates lower than those of the opposite sex for similar work. In the Senate, she’ll make it a priority to pass the Paycheck Fairness Act and will be a leading voice for economic equality. Get more details on how she’ll fight for equality.
• Stop Wage Theft & Protect Immigrant Workers: Kamala believes strongly in the protection of workers’ rights for all Californians, regardless of immigration status. All individuals are eligible for minimum wage, workers compensation, and other workplace protections. As Attorney General, Kamala established and expanded the Underground Economy Unit within her Civil Rights Enforcement Section in order to increase enforcement of state worker protection laws. She filed suit and obtained more than $1 million from eight Northern and Southern California car washes that underpaid workers, denied rest and meal breaks, and created false records of time worked. She also has aggressively pursued litigation against a Southern California trucking company for misclassifying its employees as independent contractors so the company could avoid paying a minimum wage, workers compensation, and business expense reimbursements. Kamala’s prosecution of the case resulted in a landmark 2014 California Supreme Court decision that allows the state to hold accountable trucking companies for violations of state worker protection laws. As Senator, she will work hard to ensure that important workplace protections are strengthened and enforced, keeping our economy strong and the playing field level for all businesses.
• Provide Our Veterans With What They Earned: With more than two million Veterans, California has more Veterans than any other state, and we owe them the support and care they earned while wearing our nation’s military uniform. Over the years, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has been plagued by scandal and budget crises, resulting in disgraceful levels of service and irresponsible delays in providing medical care and disability benefits. As Attorney General, Kamala formed a working group to fight scams and other predatory conduct uniquely targeting service members, and secured enhanced protections for active-duty and Veteran homeowners during the foreclosure crisis. In the Senate, Kamala will champion a robust VA for our Veterans. She will fight to ensure that when Veterans leave military service, they have the support they need to readjust to civilian life, including proper physical and mental health care. It’s unconscionable that 22 Veterans take their own lives each day. Kamala will bring together federal, state, and local government leaders plus Veteran Service Organizations and non-profits to ensure that every Veteran knows what benefits they earned and how to access those benefits. Additional outreach should be directed to our rural, minority, women, and LGBT Veterans who often access VA care and benefits at lower rates than others, especially since the issues facing women and LGBT Veterans are changing with their inclusion in combat roles and the end of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” Kamala will bring her prosecutorial drive to the Senate to help clean up the VA’s scandals and make sure no Veteran waits unnecessarily for VA benefits. Kamala will continue her fight against the for-profit colleges that prey on Veterans, sapping their GI benefits and robbing taxpayers. Kamala opposes privatizing Veterans Affairs, and she will join President Obama’s fight to reduce and end Veteran homelessness.

• Universal Pre-K & Educating A 21st Century Work Force: The only way we will be able to compete in a global economy is to create a workforce that can meet its challenges. But too many children in our country are denied a quality education through circumstances beyond their control. Kamala believes we need to ensure every child has access to a quality public education – from universal pre-kindergarten to affordable higher education – in order to build the workforce of the future.
• Community Colleges Can Help Prepare The Workforce Of The Future: Increasingly it seems that a four-year college education is required to get ahead. Community colleges should play a greater role in preparing students for the jobs of the 21st century, so that when students complete their second year, they’re ready for good-paying, sustainable jobs in high technology, clean energy, and other emerging fields. In the Senate, Kamala will bring the educational community together with the private sector and labor organizations and lead the fight to incentivize the development and implementation of curricula that will ensure community college students are prepared for high quality jobs upon graduation.
• Investing in Infrastructure: In California, we know infrastructure like roads, bridges, tunnels, and ports form the arteries of our economy. But too much of our infrastructure was built in the early 20th century to meet the needs of a much smaller state, and improvements haven’t kept pace with the state’s growth. Upgrading our infrastructure in a strategic way – not just building roads and highways – will create good-paying jobs, improve our economy, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, helping us fight climate change. Senator Barbara Boxer has been a national leader on expanding our transportation infrastructure, and in Washington, Kamala will follow her in footsteps. Kamala supports proposals to create an infrastructure bank to repair and expand our transportation, water, and technology infrastructure.
• Research & Development: In 2014, Congress let the Research and Development Tax Credits expire, a key tool that helps spur innovation in the private sector. But despite bipartisan support, for months Washington failed to extend it. Kamala supports expanding the research and development tax credit and rewarding businesses that invest in science and technology research.
• Helping Small Businesses, Start-Ups & Job Creators: Small businesses are the lifeblood of our economy and job creation. Kamala is committed to both making sure small business owners have access to capital and to cutting excessive red tape. As Attorney General, she supported efforts to stop abusive lawsuits against small businesses and business owners, and in Washington she will fight for our California small businesses and job creators.
• Create Clean Energy Jobs To Sustain Economic Growth: Congress has missed many opportunities to spur creation of clean energy jobs, which will strengthen and sustain our economy, power our businesses, and protect our natural heritage at the same time. Kamala will fight to establish a national cap-and-trade market for carbon pollution that will spur investments in clean energy jobs and technology, giving California companies a leg up in a new greener economy and making them more competitive in the global economy over the long term. Get more details about her plans for protecting the environment and building a clean economy.
• Combating Climate Change Is Good For Our Economy: Without long-term planning, climate change impacts, like rising sea levels, will create massive economic disruptions since coastal communities are home to 40 percent of America’s population. Kamala believes in fighting climate change by investing in clean energy, improved energy efficiency of our homes and buildings, smart grid upgrades, and public transportation – all investments that will sustainably lower energy costs, create jobs, and help clean our air.
• Comprehensive Immigration Reform Will Boost Our Economy:Congress has repeatedly refused to pass comprehensive immigration reform that protects our borders and provides a fair and just pathway to citizenship. That failure has hurt our economy, made it harder for our businesses to compete in the global marketplace, and hamstrung local and state governments’ ability to meet the needs of their communities. Worse yet, Washington’s failure has forced more than 11 million undocumented immigrants to live, work, and raise a family in the shadows of our society. That’s unconscionable. Bringing these workers out of the shadows will strengthen the economy, grow the GDP, and reduce federal deficits and debt. Comprehensive immigration reform will increase productivity and wages. With comprehensive reform, all workers will benefit from protections in the workplace, and reform will spur innovation, entrepreneurship, and encourage job growth. Kamala would fight hard to pass immigration reform in Washington, and she’ll take on those who stand in the way.