Kamala Harris, Joe Biden extend wishes to Hindus celebrating Ganesh Chaturthi

US Democratic Presidential candidate Joe Biden and his running mate Kamala Harris took to social media to extend wishes to Hindus celebrating the Ganesh Chaturthi around the world.

In a tweet, Biden said: "To everyone celebrating the Hindu festival of Ganesh Chaturthi in the U.S., India, and around the world, may you overcome all obstacles, be blessed with wisdom, and find a path toward new beginnings."

While Harris, his vice-presidential pick, retweeted that post and joined him to wish devotees a 'very happy Ganesh Chaturthi'. A US Senator of part Indian origin, Kamala Harris has become an icon in India and among Indian Americans, since she was picked by Biden to join him to challenge incumbent Donald Trump and VP Mike Pence in the November US elections.

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'A love for good idli'

Last week, Kamala Harris, during her maiden address to the Indian-American community, reflected on her proud Indian heritage and recalled how her mother always wanted to instill in her a "love for good idli". Harris, 55, took a trip down the memory lane, mentioning her "long walks" in Madras (now Chennai) with her grandfather who would tell her about the "heroes" responsible for the birth of the world's largest democracy.

"Today on August 15, 2020. I stand before you as the first candidate for vice president of the United States of South Asian descent," Harris said in her address organised by Indians for Biden National Council. Joined by Biden, she greeted Indian Americans on the occasion of India's Independence Day.

The Democratic Party is eyeing to not just win the White House in November but also to maintain its hold on the House of Representatives (lower house of US Congress) and flip the Senate (upper house) from Republican control. With at least three million Indian-Americans, of predominantly Hindu and Sikh faiths, the community is a key voting block that has traditionally backed Democrats but have been aggressively wooed by Trump's Republicans. 

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