Kamala Harris’ sorority forms its own PAC

Alpha Kappa Alpha, the historically Black sorority that counts Vice President Kamala Harris arsenic 1 of its astir notable alumni, has created a governmental enactment committee, an antithetic task by a sorority rallying astir the accidental to nonstop 1 of its ain to the White House.

AKA is portion of a corporate of the country’s oldest and astir prestigious sororities and fraternities known arsenic the “Divine Nine,” whose web of much than 2 cardinal alumni represents a monolithic governmental unit among a constituency that some parties are hoping to mobilize up of November’s election.

When Harris was announced arsenic Joe Biden’s moving mate backmost successful 2020, their run was flooded with thousands of donations of $19.08 — a notation to the twelvemonth of Alpha Kappa Alpha’s founding.

In office, Harris hosted a sojourn of the Divine Nine leaders astatine the White House, the archetypal clip they had each been invited determination to conscionable with a president oregon vice president, POLITICO reported successful 2021. Leaders of the Divine Nine person visited the White House oregon met with Biden oregon Harris routinely since past — including arsenic precocious arsenic May, arsenic Biden sought to enactment up his enactment among Black voters.

Last month, aft Biden dropped retired of the contention and endorsed Harris, each Divine Nine president pledged successful a connection to “meet this captious infinitesimal successful past with an unprecedented elector registration, acquisition and mobilization coordinated campaign.” The connection did not notation circumstantial candidates oregon parties.

The Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority PAC, Inc., oregon AKA 1908 PAC, volition beryllium capable to judge donations of up to $5,000 from members of the sorority and their families to enactment national campaigns and governmental parties. Kiahna Davis, a determination manager astatine AKA for the Central region, is listed arsenic the PAC’s treasurer. Neither Davis nor the PAC responded to a petition for comment.

Harris has agelong spoken fondly of AKA — whose members she has likened to “family” — on with the different Divine Nine sororities and fraternities.

The vice president’s archetypal nationalist lawsuit aft becoming the de facto Democratic nominee was an quality astatine a nationalist gathering for different Divine Nine sorority, Zeta Phi Beta, and she addressed Alpha Kappa Alpha’s gathering, oregon Boulé, earlier this summer. And a rally she held successful Atlanta soon afterward featured conscionable a tiny sampling of Divine Nine alumni successful governmental power.

AKA isn’t the lone Greek enactment with a national fundraising operation. Phi Beta Sigma, a Divine Nine fraternity, operates a PAC, and fraternity and sorority leaders founded the Fraternity & Sorority Political Action Committee successful 2005 to enactment candidates “who support and heighten the fraternity and sorority experience.”