Residents of Thulasendrapuram, India, the ancestral village of Kamala Harris, anxiously watched the U.S. election results. Despite early leads for Tru

THULASENDRAPURAM, India (AP) — The temple reverberated with rhythmic Sanskrit and Tamil hymns, as a Hindu priest held a flame before the god. As this tiny South Indian village gathered to pray for Kamala Harris, a gaggle of reporters jostled for space and camera angles.

Thulasendrapuram, the ancestral village of US Democratic candidate Kamala Harris, was once home to her maternal grandfather, former Indian diplomat PV Gopalan.

Three American women participated in prayers at Kamala Harris' ancestral village, Thulasendrapuram, Tamil Nadu, wishing her victory in the US presidential race.

As the United States gears up for a crucial presidential election, residents of Thulasendrapuram, a small village in Tamil Nadu, India, are praying for Kamala Harris’ success. Known as the ancestral village of Harris,

The 34-year-old M Umadevi, a member of the village council, said she related to Harris as a fellow woman politician.

Priests perform a ritual for the Democratic presidential nominee, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris' success in the upcoming American elections inside a temple in Thulasendrapuram, the village where Harris' maternal grandfather was born,

Residents pray for a Kamala Harris election victory in her grandfather's village:: Thulasendrapuram, India::The temple ceremony in Thulasendrapuram, in the state of Tamil Nadu, was organized by local villagers and attended by more than a dozen of them and a few tourists.

Kamala Harris' maternal grandfather, PV Gopalan, was born over a century ago in the village of Thulasendrapuram in Tamil Nadu.