CHICAGO (Reuters) – Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump questioned whether his Democratic rival Kamala Harris is “Black” during a contentious appearance at the country’s largest annual gathering of Black journalists on Wednesday.
“Is she Indian or is she Black?” Trump said of his opponent in the presidential race, drawing a smattering of jeers from an audience of about 1,000 people. “She was Indian all the way, and all of a sudden she made a turn and became a Black person.”
Harris, whose mother was Indian and whose father is Black, is the first Black and the first Asian American U.S. vice president.
“What he just said is repulsive,” White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in response to Trump’s remarks. “It’s insulting.”
Far right and conservative accounts on social media have spread misinformation questioning Harris’ racial identity.
Harris has long self-identified as both Black and South Asian American.
Since launching her White House campaign earlier this month, Harris has faced a barrage of sexist and racist attacks online, while Republican Party leaders have urged lawmakers to refrain from personal attacks and focus on her policy positions.
The panel interview started on a tense note, when ABC News reporter Rachel Scott asked Trump to explain why Black voters should support him despite a history of racist comments.
In response, Trump called the question “horrible,” “hostile” and a “disgrace” and described ABC as a “fake” network.
“I have been the best president for the Black population since Abraham Lincoln,” he said.
Trump’s first-ever appearance at the National Association of Black Journalists’ annual convention in Chicago received a backlash from some members, prompting a co-chair of the convention to step down in protest.
Trump had made inroads with Black men in particular after President Joe Biden, his former Democratic opponent, struggled to mobilize Black voters, traditionally the most loyal Democratic voting bloc. Biden won Black voters 92%-8% over Trump in 2020, according to Pew Research.
But Biden’s decision to step down in favor of Harris could make it more challenging for Trump to hold his gains.
Trump has been actively courting Black voters and has held events in cities with large Black populations, including Atlanta, where he plans a rally on Saturday.
The presidential race is likely to come down to narrow margins in a handful of battleground states. A Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Tuesday showed Trump leading Harris 43%-42%, within the poll’s margin of error, the latest in a series of surveys that have shown Harris erasing the lead Trump had opened during the final weeks of Biden’s faltering campaign.
(Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt, Tyler Clifford, Bianca Flowers, Tim Reid and Jim Oliphant; Editing by Ross Colvin, Kat Stafford and Deepa Babington)
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