--- title: Kamala Harris Is Sworn In as California's First Black Female Senator description: Find out what the 52-year-old lawmaker, Kamala Harris, said as she was officially sworn in as California's first black female senator. canonical: https://time.com/4621736/kamala-harris-sworn-in-first-black-female-senator-ca/ author: TIME article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-01-04T15:30:30.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T09:04:16.959Z og:title: Kamala Harris Officially Becomes California's First Black Female Senator og:description: She's only the second Black woman to elected to the U.S. Senate og:url: https://time.com/4621736/kamala-harris-sworn-in-first-black-female-senator-ca/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8139123959cc8383/6988b453cf40a87908c45f66/kamala-harris-first-black-female-senator.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3500 og:image:height: 1969 og:image:alt: Vice President Swears In Members Of The 115th Congress og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Kamala Harris Officially Becomes California's First Black Female Senator twitter:description: She's only the second Black woman to elected to the U.S. Senate twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8139123959cc8383/6988b453cf40a87908c45f66/kamala-harris-first-black-female-senator.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Kamala Harris Officially Becomes California's First Black Female Senator > Sponsored content. 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Worth Your Time is TIME's culture recommendation newsletter, edited by culture editor Eliza Berman. Each week it surfaces the books, shows, films and ideas TIME's editors think are worth your attention, and explains why. It is free at time.com/newsletters. #### Does TIME have a culture newsletter? Yes. Worth Your Time is TIME's culture newsletter, published weekly. #### Who writes TIME's culture recommendations? Culture editor Eliza Berman writes Worth Your Time, drawing on TIME's critics and culture desk. #### Is Worth Your Time free? Yes. It is a free newsletter available at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-worth-2026q3/newsletters?i=d6b01043-a929-4910-b718-19d439b80616&cr=time-nl-worth-2026q3-v1) by [Rachaell Davis / Essence](https://time.com/author/essence/) ## Rachaell Davis / Essence Contributor Jan 4, 2017 3:30 PM UTC  WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 3: U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) participates in a reenacted swearing-in with U.S. Vice President Joe Biden in the Old Senate Chamber at the U.S. Capitol January 3, 2017 in Washington, DC. Earlier in the day Biden swore in the newly elected and returning members on the Senate floor. (Photo by Aaron P. Bernstein/Getty Images) WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 3: U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) participates in a reenacted swearing-in with U.S. Vice President Joe Biden in the Old Senate Chamber at the U.S. Capitol January 3, 2017 in Washington, DC. Earlier in the day Biden swore in the newly elected and returning members on the Senate floor. (Photo by Aaron P. Bernstein/Getty Images) Aaron P. Bernstein/Getty Images by [Rachaell Davis / Essence](https://time.com/author/essence/) ## Rachaell Davis / Essence Contributor Jan 4, 2017 3:30 PM UTC [Kamala Harris’ 2016 election win](http://www.essence.com/news/kamala-harris-wins-second-black-woman-elected-us-senate?iid=sr-link2) was a bright spot in a draining election season for many and now the Oakland, California native has made her historic accomplishment official. Surrounded by family, friends and fellow incoming politicians, Harris was officially sworn in by Vice President Joe Biden as California’s newest U.S. Senator on Tuesday morning. The moment cemented Harris’ spot in history as the state’s first Black female Senator, first Indian Senator and only the second Black woman to elected to the U.S. Senate. Among the family members who were in attendance to witness the memorable moment were Harris’ sister, husband, step-children, brother-in-law and a handful of other extended family members, according to the [L.A. Times](http://www.latimes.com/politics/essential/la-pol-ca-essential-politics-updates-kamala-harris-sworn-in-as-california-s-1483462395-htmlstory.html). A barrage of state officials from around the country were also on hand for the swearing in ceremony, which took place just after 9 a.m. PST. > [](https://twitter.com/KamalaHarris/status/816333066515968000) The 52-year-old Democrat and former state attorney general is one of seven new Senators elected in 2016\. Now retired Senator Barbara Boxer had only good things to say about celebrating Harris as her successor during her farewell address from the Senate floor last Wednesday. “I am, of course, ecstatic that my successor is Kamala Harris, who has served as attorney general in my state with great distinction and who will continue the tradition of having a strong, progressive woman in this seat,” Boxer said. “Kamala, you heard it here: a strong, progressive woman in this seat is what we need.” Harris has repeatedly emphasized that combating the Trump administrations’ plans to deport millions of immigrants illegally will be a priority on her agenda as Senator. She is one of several [women of color who made political history](http://www.essence.com/news/politics/women-color-made-history-election-night-2016?iid=sr-link8) in 2016. _This_ [_article_](http://www.essence.com/news/politics/kamala-harris-officially-sworn-in) _originally appeared on_ [_Essence.com_](http://www.essence.com) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4621736/kamala-harris-sworn-in-first-black-female-senator-ca/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4621736/kamala-harris-sworn-in-first-black-female-senator-ca/"},"headline":"Kamala Harris Officially Becomes California's First Black Female Senator","datePublished":"2017-01-04T15:30:30.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T09:04:16.959Z","description":"She's only the second Black woman to elected to the U.S. Senate","url":"https://time.com/4621736/kamala-harris-sworn-in-first-black-female-senator-ca/","keywords":["motto"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8139123959cc8383/6988b453cf40a87908c45f66/kamala-harris-first-black-female-senator.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Rachaell Davis / Essence"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8139123959cc8383/6988b453cf40a87908c45f66/kamala-harris-first-black-female-senator.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Vice President Swears In Members Of The 115th Congress","caption":"Vice President Swears In Members Of The 115th Congress","creditText":"Aaron P. 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