Kamala Harris Unrecognizable Without Makeup

It may sound pretty shallow, but presidential elections are largely determined by how candidates look. This is a practice that goes back to when John F. Kennedy, Jr., squared off against Richard M. Nixon. Many who attended their first debate thought that Nixon won, but those watching at home thought the handsome Kennedy did a better job, thanks in large part to the fact that he put on TV-friendly makeup ahead of time.

Now, current Vice President Kamala Harris is getting ready to square off against Donald Trump during the 2024 presidential election. Much attention has been paid to Trump’s own makeup routine…after all, that orange skin has to come from somewhere. However, we’re now more fascinated with Kamala’s makeup secrets and how borderline unrecognizable she is without makeup. 

Just what are those secrets, and what does this presidential contender look like without makeup? Keep reading to find out!

The hair secrets of Kamala Harris

The general consensus on Kamala Harris’ hair is that it looks very good. So good, in fact, that many people would like to follow in her footsteps when it comes to creating well-coiffed hair. If you’re one of those folks, you’re in luck, as Harris has revealed at least a few of her haircare secrets during an episode of Baby, It’s Keke Palmer.

Looking at the presidential contender’s hair, we originally thought that she must know her way around a curling iron. Somewhat surprisingly, though, this is not the case, as she told her host, “You know, I don’t use a curling iron. It’s too much heat.” 

With that in mind, what does Harris rely on other than a curling iron? “I use a round brush,” she said. While it’s tough to put down the old curling iron, we might become round brush believers if it can similarly transform our own hair!

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Skincare tips from the Vice President

Even more than her hair, one thing that people love about Kamala Harris is her beautiful skin. Despite the fact that she is always appearing in front of cameras, Harris manages to look effortlessly beautiful, with vibrant and youthful skin that effectively hides her real age. As usual, that left us with one big question for this presidential hopeful: what’s your secret?

Fortunately, Harris already spilled her secrets to Cosmopolitan back in 2019. According to her, “since I’ve been campaigning, I use the wipes, the Cetaphil wipes, to clean, but otherwise, I use the skin cleanser and that’s it.” Other than that, she just uses regular moisturizer and tries to avoid fancy serums because she doesn’t really have time to fiddle with them.

In a charming moment during the interview, Harris also mentioned her own confusion over how serums are packaged and marketed to us. “All of a sudden, they’ve become a thing, and then there are all kinds of them. And then some of them say they’re a lotion but it clearly looks like a serum.” Confused about weird labeling and packaging in the cosmetics aisle? Girl, same!

No makeup on Thanksgiving Day

Chances are that you’ve never seen Kamala Harris without makeup. There’s a reason for that: she’s mostly been in the public eye since she successfully ran as Joe Biden’s running mate for the 2020 election. With cameras following her every move, she has a powerful incentive to wear makeup almost all the time.

But back in 2018, a less famous Harris took to Twitter to show off some of her Thanksgiving cooking rituals. The result is rather startling: while Harris looks great in the photo, it’s also hard to recognize her. That’s not a slam, though, as we’d kill to have skin that looks this great without any help!

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No makeup for cooking, period

Kamala Harris has a deeply practical streak, which is just one reason why she doesn’t wear makeup while cooking. She isn’t vain, though (which is surprising for a politician), which means she isn’t afraid to show off her different looks sans makeup. That was made clear the December after that Thanksgiving post where she took to Facebook and showed off a picture of herself and her sister making Christmas dinner.

The lack of makeup didn’t prevent Harris from flashing her trademark smile at the camera. As for us, we are kinda salivating at the sight of that gumbo. Do you think this presidential contender will be willing to share her recipe with us?

What does the Kamala Harris makeup routine look like? 

Now that you’ve seen what Kamala Harris looks like without makeup, you probably have just one question left: when she does wear makeup, what does her routine look like? Fortunately, her makeup artist Sam Fine spilled the details to Hello Giggles in 2021.

According to him, Harris has “a job to do,” which is why the “makeup can’t be overly glamorous.” Fine, who also did makeup for Michelle Obama, said that the Harris makeup routine focuses on four key areas: “voluminous lashes, feathered brows, radiant complexions, and neutral sheer lip shades” Throw in some professional blotting papers to keep away the oil and you, too, can look a bit more like Kamala!

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