Kamala Harris makes surprise appearance on SNL as U.S. election looms

U.S. Vice-President Kamala Harris made an unannounced trip to New York to appear on Saturday Night Live, briefly stepping away from the battleground states where she's been campaigning with just three days to go before the presidential election.

Harris departed on Air Force Two after a campaign stop on Saturday in Charlotte, N.C.

She was scheduled to head to Detroit, but once the aircraft was in the air, aides said it was actually going to New York.

It is the final SNL episode before election day on Tuesday.

Actor Maya Rudolph first played Harris on the show in 2019 and has reprised her role this season, doing a spot-on impression of the vice-president, including calling herself "Momala."

Rudolph opened the show's season premiere with the line: "Well, well, well. Look who fell out of that coconut tree." And she's joked about keeping President Joe Biden in his place.

Harris's husband, second gentleman Doug Emhoff, has been played by former cast member Andy Samberg, and Biden is played by Dana Carvey, who also famously played then-president George H.W. Bush in the early 1990s.

On Saturday, the first lines Harris spoke as she sat across from Rudolph were drowned out by cheers from the audience. 

"It is nice to see you Kamala," Harris told Rudolph. "And I'm just here to remind you, you got this."

In sync, the two said supporters need to "Keep Kamala and carry-on-ala," declared that they share each other's "belief in the promise of America," and delivered the show's signature "Live from New York, it's Saturday night!" 

Rudolph's performance so far has won critical and comedic acclaim — including from Harris herself.

"Maya Rudolph — I mean, she's so good," Harris said last month on ABC's The View. "She had the whole thing, the suit, the jewelry, everything!"

Harris added she was impressed with Rudolph's "mannerisms."

• Have questions about the U.S. election? Email us at ask@cbc.ca. We'll be answering some of your questions live on TikTok and YouTube on November 4.

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Meanwhile, former president and Republican nominee Donald Trump continues to hold rallies across many swing states to speak about his stance on immigration, recently telling a crowd that the United States is now an "occupied" country but election day would be "liberation day" if he is voted in as president.

Jason Miller, a senior adviser to Trump, expressed surprise that Harris would appear on SNL given what he characterized as her unflattering portrayal on the show. Asked if Trump had been invited to appear, he said: "I don't know. Probably not."

Politicians nonetheless have a long history on SNL, including Trump, who hosted the show in 2015 — though appearing so close to election day is unusual. 

Hillary Clinton was running for president in the 2008 Democratic primary when she appeared next to Amy Poehler, who played her on the show and offered a trademark, exaggerated cackle. The real Clinton wondered during her appearance, "Do I really laugh like that?"

Harris said pretty much the exact same line on Saturday night in response to Rudolph's portrayal of her laugh.

Clinton returned in 2016, while running against Trump in a race she ultimately lost.

The first sitting president to appear on Saturday Night Live was Republican Gerald Ford, who did so less than a year after the show debuted. Ford appeared on April 17, 1976, and declared the show's famous opening, "Live from New York."

Barack Obama was still just a Democratic presidential candidate when he appeared in February 2008, and Republican Bob Dole made an appearance in 1996 — a mere 11 days after losing that year's election to Democrat Bill Clinton. Dole consoled Norm Macdonald, who played the Kansas senator on the show.

Then there was Tina Fey's 2008 impression of vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin — and in particular her joke that "I can see Russia from my house." It was so good that Fey won an Emmy award. Palin herself appeared on the show that season, in the weeks before the election.

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