Joe Biden's new running mate, Kamala Harris, is a Westmount High graduate

Joe Biden has chosen U.S. SenatorKamala Harris, a graduate of Westmount High School, as his running mate in his bid to defeat President Donald Trump.

Biden is the presumptive presidential nominee of the Democratic Party.

Harris, 55,has madehistory by being the first Black woman to compete on a major party's presidential ticket.

For five years, from Grade 7 to Grade 11, Harrisattended high school in Montreal. She graduated in 1981. Dean Smith, a former classmate, recalled Harris as "perfect, always smiling, a nice person" on CBC's Let's Go Tuesday afternoon.

"She got along with everybody," Smith said. "It was a lot of rich kids from Westmount mixed in with kids from the lower area of Montreal. She popped up from California. She could blend with both."

Harris, who served as California's attorney general before being elected to the U.S. Senate in 2017, was born in Oakland, Calif.

Her mother, Shyamala Gopalan Harris, a breast-cancer scientist originally from Chennai, India, brought Harris and her sister, Maya, to Montreal in the 1970s when she took a job teaching at McGill University and doing research at the Jewish General Hospital.

Her father, Donald Harris, was born in Jamaica and is aretired Stanford University economics professor.

Harrisis known for her rigorous questioning in the U.S. Senate, including a memorable exchange with Attorney General William Barr over the Mueller report in May2019.

Sought the Democratic nomination

In January 2019, she announced she would join the Democratic presidential race. But byDecember, she had officially withdrawn,citing a lack of funds.

Still, her campaign was notable for her strong performance in debates, where she often targeted Biden.

Smith, her former classmate, called her "the right match for Donald Trump."

"He won't be able to verbally spar with her," he said. "She has the intellect to deal with him."

Biden made the announcement on Twitter Tuesday afternoon.

Kamala Harris spent five years in Montreal

4 years ago

Duration 0:29

Now she's aiming to be the first female vice president of the United States.

"I have the great honor to announce that I've picked Kamala Harris a fearless fighter for the little guy, and one of the country's finest public servants as my running mate," the presumptive Democratic presidential candidate wrote on Twitter.

The U.S. Presidential election takes place on Nov. 3.