Former Vice President Kamala Harris shared a shocking explanation as to why she doesn't plan on running for an elected position anytime soon ... revealing she believes U.S. democracy is a "broken system."

KH freely divulged her opinion on "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" Thursday night, explaining ... "I always believed that as fragile as our democracy is, our systems would be strong enough to defend our most fundamental principles. And I think right now that they’re not as strong as they need to be." Getty

She didn't say she's getting out of politics altogether -- she told the late-night host she plans to "travel the country" to meet and listen to people ... without asking for their vote in return.

She further expressed some of her political concerns by denouncing Congress

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