VP Kamala Harris' Financial Disclosure Reveals 'Boring' Investment Choices — Here's What The Leading Democratic Candidate Holds

Vice President Kamala Harris demonstrates a preference for passively managed index funds, recent financial disclosure for 2023 reveals.

What Happened: Harris’ investment style, characterized by financial experts as “boring,” suggests a lack of financial conflicts. The disclosure comes at a time when Congress is debating restrictions on the types of investments elected leaders can own.

According to a CNBC report, a bill preventing members of Congress and their dependents from purchasing certain investments, such as individual stocks, was recently approved by a Senate panel.

“She’s definitely not attempting to trade on any inside type of information. For me, it was quite refreshing that it appears to be very passive,” Dustin Thackeray, a chartered financial analyst and chief investment officer at Crewe Advisors, told CNBC.

The disclosure also sheds light on Harris’ financial situation. She has invested in eight different funds as part of two separate 457(b) deferred compensation plans from her time working in California, in addition to participating in certain defined benefit pension plans.

Carolyn McClanahan, a certified financial planner who reviewed Harris’ financial disclosure, said it makes her “heart sing” to see Harris choosing low-cost passive investment strategies.

"To me, she has the cleanest portfolio you'll see in a politician. She owns a bunch of index funds; there's no way … she can game the system," McClanahan told CNBC.

Harris’ husband, Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff, has more than 30 fund investments that are primarily passively managed.

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Financial experts suggest that the couple could streamline their portfolio by reducing the number of funds they own. The disclosure also reveals cash holdings that could total around $850,000 or more, depending on the exact balances based on the ranges given.

Harris also has a 2020 mortgage at a 2.625% rate for a personal residence valued between more than $1 million to $5 million. However, it is a 7-year adjustable-rate mortgage, which means that low rate won’t last.

Finally, Harris lists more than $8,000 in royalty income from the 2019 children’s picture book she wrote, “Superheroes are Everywhere,” as well as a smaller sum from her 2019 memoir, “The Truths We Hold.”

"The good thing about cash balances today is that they are actually making an investment return, where they hadn't for many, many years prior to higher rates," Thackeray added.

Why It Matters: Harris’ financial disclosure provides a glimpse into the investment strategies of one of the nation’s top leaders and potential next president.

Her conservative approach to investment, favoring passively managed funds, aligns with the ongoing debates in Congress about the types of investments elected officials can own.

This disclosure could potentially influence future legislation and set a precedent for other leaders in their investment decisions.

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This content was partially produced with the help of Benzinga Neuro and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

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