Harris has made this claim repeatedly over the years, and multiple reputable news outlets have reported on the story. But, aside from Harris’ testimony itself, there is no evidence (such as a photo, employment record or confirmation from a friend or family member) to independently verify the claim. We’ve reached out to Harris’ campaign and McDonald’s and we’ll update this report when, or if, we learn more.
For years now, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris has claimed she once worked at McDonald’s while at college. As the 2024 presidential election gains momentum, her campaign has increasingly highlighted this alleged chapter in her life as an indication of her working-class roots.
On Aug. 10, 2024, for example, her presidential campaign released a new video advertisement in which she claimed she worked at the fast-food restaurant “while she got her degree,” presumably in reference to the undergraduate degree she received from Howard University in 1986.
A few days later, The Washington Post reported on the ad, writing: “Harris is making her stint at the Golden Arches a part of her story.” Other outlets, such as The New York Times, CNN, Politico and ABC News, also repeated the claim, relying on Harris’ testimony alone as evidence. The New York Times and Politico reported she worked at McDonald’s “between her freshman and sophomore years in college.”
However, not everyone on the internet believed Harris. For example, one X user wrote: “There are no records or credible sources indicating that she worked at McDonald’s.”
Aside from the above-mentioned news reports, there was no tangible evidence of Harris working at McDonald’s as a college student. We reached out to Harris’ campaign, as well as McDonald’s headquarters, seeking tax records or other proof — which could include photos or videos of her working at the restaurant, employment records or physical items such as a uniform or name tag. We also reached out to Harris’ sister, Maya, as well as a close friend from Howard University seeking comment, and looked for public interviews by friends or family members of Harris’ to confirm the story, with no luck.
We will update this report when we uncover evidence to independently verify or debunk Harris’ story.
Harris Has Repeated the McDonald’s Story
Long before her 2024 presidential campaign, Harris talked about the alleged work experience, “doing french fries and ice cream.” In 2019, for example, after speaking at a Service Employees International Union rally, she posted a video on X of the event with the caption: I worked at @McDonalds when I was a student, doing french fries and ice cream. There wasn’t a family relying on me to pay the bills — but that’s the reality for too many workers today. Proud to stand with @SEIU today for livable wages and a safe working environment.
Flash forward to her time as vice president, and, in April 2024, Harris mentioned the gig during an appearance on “The Drew Barrymore Show.” When assistant host Ross Mathews told her he once worked the register, drive-thru and grill at McDonald’s, Harris said: “I did fries, and then I did the cashier.”
In an August 2024 X post, she again claimed she worked at McDonald’s in college “to earn spending money.”
Other members of the Democratic Party have repeated the anecdote, too. During a speech at the 2024 Democratic National Convention on Aug. 21, for instance, former President Bill Clinton said: “When [Harris] was young, she worked at McDonald’s, and she greeted every person with that thousand-watt smile and said, ‘How can I help you?’ Now she’s at the pinnacle of power and she’s still asking, ‘How can I help you?’”
In sum, until we uncover further evidence to corroborate or disprove Harris’ story, we rated this claim “Unproven.”
