DigitEye India Fact Checkers
A screenshot of a Reddit post claiming that US Vice President Kamala Harris received a score of 78 in an IQ test while studying at Howard University is going viral. The Thomas platform defines intelligence quotient (IQ) as “a standard score that shows how far above or below, his/her peer group an individual stands in mental ability.” In this context, claiming that Harris has 78 IQ score during her college days was aimed at negative narrative without evidence.
Kamala Harris had a 78 IQ when she attended Howard University. pic.twitter.com/20uaRZmBwT
— Conservative Patriot Pizza Bitch (@PatrioticPizzas) September 23, 2024
The claim can also be accessed on X, posted by a user @PatrioticPizzas on Sept. 23, 2024, with the title, “Kamala’s IQ Revealed.” The claim stated, “Kamala Harris had a 78 IQ when she attended Howard University.” It’s known that Kamala Harris studied at Howard, a historically Black university, in 1986.
The screenshot has gone viral and was reposted by many on X, Facebook and Instagram. One X user Wall Street Silver (@WallStreetSilv) with more than 1.4 million followers, reposted it with a caption: “I believe it.” The Reddit post, now deleted, was viewed nearly 2 million times.
FACT CHECK
Due to the post’s sensitivity and its impact on the general public, Digiteye India took it up for fact-checking. The said Reddit post duly deleted stating, “Sorry, this post was deleted by the person who originally posted it.” The user’s name reads ‘r/AskAnAmerican’.
The fact that the user who created the Sept. 23 Reddit post later deleted it, indicates that the post is not authenticated.
While there is no evidence to prove or unprove the claim at this stage, the fact that Kamala Harris studied at Howard University and later Law at California University underscore the need for higher IQ levels of law graduates in the US.
IQ Tests
Usually, measuring IQ of a person is done by a standardized test, such as the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale, and their score is assumed to reflect their level of intelligence (minus random error). However, under the historiometric approach, a person’s IQ is quantitatively estimated based on variables having known correlations with IQ, such as highest level of education, academic honors, scores on college admissions exams, occupation, and preferences.
Since IQ scores were not available for most of the presidents, a 2006 study conducted by University of California’s Davis psychologist Dean Keith Simonton following the historiometric approach estimated the IQs of past US presidents, where most of the Presidents throughout the 100 years preceding the study in 2006, stood out with more than 120 score in IQ levels.
Going by these variables, Kamala Harris has indeed the highest level of education by American standards, academic honors, occupation and college education. While the modern presidents’ IQ levels cannot be tested unless they are subjectd to any study, the allegations that Harris scored merely 78 in IQ score without any evidence is misleading.
Further, a similar false claim was made against Trump in 2019 claiming that his IQ score was only 73, which was debunked by Snopes here. Hence, the claim that Harris scored merely 78 in IQ is equally misleading without evidence.
Claim: Kamala Harris received a score of 78 in an IQ test while studying at Howard University.
Conclusion: Misleading. No evidence to substantiate the claim and by Historiometric approach, it cannot be established as true.
Rating: Misleading — 
