Affair Rumors That Have Plagued Kamala Harris For Years

Kamala Harris has been the subject of plenty of rumors throughout her political career, but the former vice president's career has often especially been overshadowed by her previous age-gap fling with former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown. Not only was it the topic of conversation with her competitors in the 2002 race for district attorney, but it was media fodder during her 2020 campaign for VP and 2024 campaign for president.

Whispers of a scandalous affair between politicians ran rampant through social media and, unsurprisingly, caught Megyn Kelly's attention. The journalist claimed that Harris tried to "sleep her way into politics and power," specifically citing the role Brown played in Harris' early career. In 1994, a 29-year-old Harris began a relationship with Brown, then 60. Though it has been speculated that Brown was having an affair with Harris, he had actually been separated from his wife, Blanche, for over a decade.

While they were dating, Brown — who was speaker of the California Assembly — notably appointed Harris to the Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board and the California Medical Assistance Commission, which led to the rumors that Brown is behind the former California attorney general's success.

While it's true that Kamala Harris and Willie Brown briefly dated, the rumors have left the pair explaining their relationship decades after calling it quits. In 2019, Brown cleared the air via the San Francisco Chronicle. "Yes, we dated. It was more than 20 years ago. Yes, I may have influenced her career by appointing her to two state commissions when I was Assembly speaker," he wrote, adding that, over the years, he also supported the careers of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, California Governor Gavin Newsom, and former Senator Dianne Feinstein.

Harris herself addressed the rumors that Brown was a pillar in her political flourishing, telling SF Weekly in 2003 that she now saw him as an "albatross hanging around my neck." She added, "I do not owe him a thing." Brown reiterated his ex-girlfriend's statement to The Sunday Times. "I think talent is what got her where she is," he told them.

Brown's praise apparently only goes so far, according to Harris' 2024 political opponent, Donald Trump. After enduring a scary experience with Brown when a helicopter ride nearly turned fatal, Trump explained how Brown besmirched Harris. "He told me terrible things about her," Trump said (via KRON4). "Anyway, I guess he had a big part in what happened with Kamala, but he ... I don't know, maybe he's changed his tune. But he was not a fan of hers very much at that point."