Vice President Kamala Harris is on track to become the new Democratic nominee after President Joe Biden on Sunday announced his decision to drop out of the race.

Harris plans to visit Milwaukee Tuesday, the state’s largest, blue city that will be critical to her campaign. But Harris also has ties to Madison, also a crucial hub of Democratic voters.

Here’s what to know about Harris’ ties to Wisconsin.

Did Kamala Harris grow up in Wisconsin?

From the ages of 3 to 5, Harris lived on the west side of Madison, before leaving in 1970. Harris visited her childhood home when she campaigned in Madison in March.

At that event, Harris said the home had been renovated from the “cabin” it was when she had lived there, and stood with the current homeowner on the back patio overlooking Lake Mendota. 

“I don’t remember the house as much as I remember the path down to the lake,” she told reporters. “Welcome to my Madison roots.”

Harris told the crowd at the campaign event that the thing she remembered most was Lake Mendota.

“So I do feel a very strong personal connection, and I’m very happy to be here with all of you doing the work we’re going to do together,” Harris said.

More: Kamala Harris rallies voters, and works in a visit to her childhood home, in return to Madison

Kamala Harris was born in California, but considers herself a Madison native

In 2018, Harris joined Sen. Tammy Baldwin at a rally in the state’s capital where she told the crowd she was a Madison “native,” Madison365 reported.

“Little-known fact: I lived in Madison,” Harris said. She added the rally was “kinda personal” for her.

Harris was born in Oakland, California. She also lived in Illinois before her few years living in Madison.

Did Kamala Harris’ parents work at UW-Madison?

Both of Harris’ parents worked at the University of Wisconsin-Madison during her childhood.

At the time, her father, Donald Harris, was an associate professor of economics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her mother, Shyamala Gopalan, worked as a breast cancer researcher in the McArdle Laboratory for Cancer Research.

In her autobiography, “The Truths We Hold,” Harris cited the move to Madison as the reason for her parents’ separation.

More: Kamala Harris won’t get her moment in Milwaukee — but her roots are deeper in the state than some realize

Where did Kamala Harris go to school?

While she has connections to Madison, Harris is not a Badger.

Kamala Harris studied political science and economics at Howard University, receiving a bachelor’s degree in 1986. She earned a law degree in 1989 from the University of California, Berkeley Hastings College of Law.

What is Kamala Harris’ ethnic background?

Her father was born in Jamaica and her mother was born in India. Harris is the first woman and the first African American and the first person of South Asian descent to be vice president.

How old is Kamala Harris?

Harris, born on Oct. 20, 1964, is 59 years old.

USA TODAY and Lawrence Andrea of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel contributed to this report.

MILWAUKEE — Chef Dan Jacobs has been busy since earning a top-three spot on season 21 of “Top Chef,” which featured many locations across Wisconsin.

He said being on the Bravo network cooking show was one of his longtime dreams. Jacobs credited all the people who supported him in his career with helping him fulfill it.

Now, he’s returning the favor by helping other chefs fulfill their dreams.

Jacobs invited Kitty Storey, 17, from Wauwatosa to come cook with him at one of his Milwaukee restaurants, EsterEv. Together, they filmed the 204th episode of Kitty Storey’s show, “Cooking with Kitty.”

Kitty Storey, who has Down syndrome and autism, has earned quite a following on YouTube with her show. 

“This is an inspiring thing to be able to do,” said Jacobs. “I have a lot of requests for my time, but this is one of the things I really wanted, because to me, this is what it’s all about. This is why I went on ‘Top Chef.’ This is why I do the things I do, because I want to be able to show that anybody can do anything.”

Kitty’s mom, Kim Storey, helps her daughter put the show together. She shoots and edits every episode. Kim Storey said having her daughter was the best thing that ever happened to her.

(Spectrum News 1/Wendy Strong)

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“How thankful I am that I get to be her mom, and that she was born to us,” she said.

Kim Storey said that her daughter was born prematurely, weighing only two pounds. She said the first time Kitty’s grandmother held her, she remembered her saying, “she’s just a baby kitty.” After that moment, the name stuck.

Kim and Kitty Storey started cooking together during the pandemic as part of a school assignment. It was a challenging time, as Kitty Storey’s school went entirely virtual. Kim Storey said she soon realized it was an opportunity to inspire and educate others by sharing the cooking segments.

“We’re doing it to give representation to people in the disability community, and a lot of people don’t realize that people with Down syndrome can also have autism,” she said.

(Spectrum News 1/Wendy Strong)

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Jacobs has a similar mission. He was diagnosed with the neuro-muscular disorder, Kennedy’s disease, eight years ago. Among the many challenges it presents, it affects the use of his arms and legs. It’s something he talked about on “Top Chef.”

“I love the idea of being a spokesperson, or somebody who inspires people who are differently abled,” he said. “It’s hard. None of this stuff is easy, like I wake up and I want to go back to bed. At the same time, you got to get up. You got to do what you got to do, because I do love this, and I love the fact that I’m inspiring other people.”

In his quest to inspire, Jacobs said he gets inspiration from Kitty Storey.

“Just her willingness to jump in and do anything, like I had her rolling out gnocchi. She takes instruction really well,” said Jacobs.

(Spectrum News 1/Wendy Strong)

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While filming the latest episode of “Cooking with Kitty,” Jacobs shared some advice with Kitty Storey and her mom.

“Don’t let anybody ever tell her no, that she can’t do something. Also, do what you love. Don’t do it just because you have to do it. Do it because you love it,” he said.

Highs in the mid 80s and sunny skies on Saturday!

We could see a couple of rain showers or thunderstorms in Northeast Wisconsin Saturday evening. No severe weather is expected.
This is due to a cold front draped over Northern Wisconsin. The front is also bringing some wildfire smoke to much of the Upper Midwest! This will cause minor impacts to Wisconsin – air quality could decrease.

Sunday comes with a chance for isolated showers across the neighborhoods with highs near 80 degrees.
Mostly Sunny conditions on Monday as highs climb into the low 80s.
A couple of rain showers and storms as we head into next week. Tuesday looks to have the best chance for widespread rain.