Maya Rudolph and Kamala Harris are a match made in sketch comedy heaven. When the Vice President of the United States first ran in 2019, the internet almost immediately buzzed with the idea of βSaturday Night Liveβ alum Maya Rudolph, whose resemblance to Harris is striking, returning to the beloved sketch comedy show to play the political figure.
Rudolph depicted Harris during her presidential run and during her run campaigning alongside Joe Biden as Vice President. While time will tell if Rudolph will reprise her turn as Harris when βSNLβ returns this fall (sheβs teased the possibilityΒ as recently as this week), weβre breaking down some of Rudolphβs best performances as Harris.
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DNC Town Hall
Rudolph made her grand return to βSNLβ as Harris in a sketch in September 2019, more than a year before she would eventually become the next Vice President of the United States. Taking on the DNC Town Hall that saw Harris gain massive momentum in the 2020 Democratic primary, Rudolphβs performance gets right to the point, immediately repeating Harrisβ viral βThat little girl was meβ moment.
2020 Democratic Debate
Alongside other βSNLβ cast members playing presidential hopefuls, Rudolph returned to the βSNLβ stage once again in a sketch centered around the Democratic primary race, this time mimicking the much-buzzed-about debate. Leaning into Harrisβ various meme-worthy moments from her 2020 campaign, the successful sketch was another glimpse at just how spot-on Rudolphβs Harris can be.
PBS Democratic Debate Cold Open
A bittersweet performance, Rudolphβs appearance in SNLβs take on a Democratic Debate Cold Open on CBS aired after Harris dropped out of the Presidential race. At the time, it seemed as if this could perhaps be Rudolphβs last time taking on Harris on the show. βYou could have had a bad bitch,β Rudolph as Harris sings in the sketch, referencing Lizzoβs hit song, βTruth Hurts.β Thankfully, Harrisβ journey to the White House (and Rudolphβs return to SNL) was only beginning.
VP Fly Debate Cold Open
Another memorable performance was when the sketch show took on the Vice Presidential debate between then-Vice President Mike Pence and Vice Presidential nominee Harris. The scene leaned heavily on the COVID-19 aspects of the time, including Harris walking out with Lysol in hand. The greatest moment of the sketch, however, is when Rudolph perfectly recites one of the breakout lines from the original debate: βMr. Vice President, Iβm speaking!β
Kamala
Our final pick is the 2021 βKamalaβ sketch. Airing when Harris was already vice president, the skit sees Harris hosting a Passover dinner with a few familiar faces, including βSNLβ legend Martin Short as the Second Gentleman and husband to Harris Doug Emhoff, Aidy Bryant as Ted Cruz, Kenan Thompson as Senator Raphael Warnock, Alex Moffat as Joe Biden and more. Lower stakes than the sketches recreating actual debates, the nearly eight-minute scene allows Rudolph to sit in her Harris impersonation in all its glory as she hosts a fabulous (and friendly) dinner.
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