Inauguration Day 2021: Kamala Harris Is Sworn in as Vice President and Social Media Is Emotional

Standing in the perimeters of the secured Capitol complex with Vice President Mike Pence in attendance, Kamala Harris on Wednesday was sworn in as the next vice president of the United States. Harris, who made history not only as the first woman to be the Vice President of the United States, but also the first Black person and the first South Asian American person to hold the position, took her oath of office from Justice Sonia Sotomayor, the Supreme Court's first Latina justice, just before Joe Biden taking the Presidential Oath of Office.

The child of Jamaican and Indian immigrants and an Oakland, California native, Harris graduated from UC-Hastings College of the Law and served as San Francisco district attorney before serving as California's attorney general. In 2016, she was elected to the U.S. Senate, making her the only Black woman in the chamber. After Harris dropped out of the presidential race, Biden selected her as his running mate, making her just the third woman to serve as a vice-presidential candidate for a major political party, following Geraldine Ferraro as the Democratic vice-presidential pick in 1984 and Sarah Palin as the Republican vice-presidential pick in 2008. She formally accepted the Democratic party's nomination for vice president in August, delivering a 17-minute address in which she reflected on the impact her nomination would have.

"I keep thinking about that 25-year-old Indian woman — all of five feet tall — who gave birth to me at Kaiser Hospital in Oakland, California. On that day, she probably could have never imagined that I would be standing before you now speaking these words: I accept your nomination for Vice President of the United States of America," she said at the time. "I do so, committed to the values she taught me. To the Word that teaches me to walk by faith and not by sight. And to a vision passed on through generations of Americans — one that Joe Biden shares. A vision of our nation as a Beloved Community — where all are welcome, no matter what we look like, where we come from, or who we love."

Wednesday's inauguration ceremony will be followed by Celebrating America, a primetime special event hosted by Tom Hanks. The 90-minute special is set to feature remarks from both Harris and Biden and performances from Demi Lovato, Justin Timberlake, Jon Bon Jovi, and Ant Clemons.