With former Vice President Joe Biden

all but assured of being the Democratic nominee for President, Jamaicans

throughout the Diaspora are unanimous in their support for California Senator

Kamala Harris as his running mate.

Their voices have gotten even louder

since last week when Biden announced in a debate with rival Bernie Sanders that

if he is the nominee he would definitely select a woman to run on the

Democratic ticket.

“Kamala Harris has Jamaican roots, and I will unabashedly say that I hope she is on the ticket,” said Michael Davis, a Jamaica-born man in Florida. “She is also one of the most qualified candidates out there and yes…she is black.”

For New York-based Jamaican, Annie White, Biden would do well to have Harris on the ticket where he would be guaranteed the support of women of colour.

“Her Jamaican connection is a big plus for me, but I think she could help him more than anybody else could,” she noted. “She is also somebody who is ready from day one to be president.”

Harris has long been seen as a

leading contender for a place on the Democratic ticket.

And apart from a debate stage clash

in which she attacked the former vice president’s record on race, the two have

long had a reportedly warm relationship and share a pragmatic streak that could

have wide appeal.

The 55-year-old former prosecutor is viewed with suspicion as a “cop” by some on the left but has been a star senator of the Trump era, known for her tough questioning of William Barr, the president’s handpicked attorney general, and Brett Kavanaugh, his controversial second Supreme Court pick.