It's official: Vice President Kamala Harris goes over the top and clinches Democratic presidential nomination
Harris has made history as the first woman of color leading a major national ticket
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Vice President Kamala Harris on Friday officially clinched her party's 2024 presidential nomination, and the Democratic National Committee (DNC) announced that the vice president had secured the votes of a majority of pledged delegates to the Democrats' upcoming national convention.
"I am so proud to confirm that Vice President Harris has earned more than a majority of votes from all convention delegates and will be the nominee of the Democratic Party following the close of voting on Monday," DNC chair Jaime Harrison said in a statement.
Harris, on a call Friday with supporters, said, "I am honored to be the presumptive Democratic nominee for President of the United States."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}She emphasized that "the tireless work of our delegates, our state leaders and staff has been pivotal in making this moment possible."
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Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a campaign rally in Atlanta on Tuesday. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
The news came amid a virtual roll call for the nomination, which the DNC kicked off on Thursday and will last through Monday.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}And while the nomination of Harris was never in doubt, the vice president was the only candidate to qualify for the presidential nomination roll call. It marks an historic milestone in the nation's history, as Harris becomes the first woman of color to lead a major political party's national ticket.
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While the official nomination vote by the delegates is being held remotely, the DNC said a ceremonial roll call will be held at the Democratic National Convention, which is set to kick off Aug. 19 in Chicago.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Harris' clinching of the nomination comes less than two weeks after President Biden's blockbuster announcement that he was ending his 2024 re-election campaign against former President Trump, the GOP's nominee.
President Biden addresses the nation from the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., on July 24 regarding his decision to drop his Democratic presidential re-election bid. (Evan Vucci, Pool via AP)
Biden's stunning news came amid mounting pressure from within the Democratic Party for him to drop out after a disastrous performance in last month's first presidential debate with Trump. The 81-year-old Biden's halting and stumbling delivery fueled questions about his physical and mental abilities to serve another four years in the White House.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}But Biden's immediate backing of Harris ignited a surge of endorsements for the vice president by Democratic governors, senators, House members and other party leaders. Within 36 hours, Harris announced that she had locked up her party's nomination by landing the verbal backing of a majority of the nearly 4,000 convention delegates.
With Harris' nomination now cleared of any doubt, speculation has soared in the past week and a half over whom the vice president will choose as her running mate. The Harris campaign announced that the vice president and her soon-to-be-named running mate will embark on a swing through all seven key battleground states starting Tuesday in Pennsylvania.
After the presidential nomination virtual roll call concludes at 6 p.m. ET on Monday, DNC rules allow for Harris to place the name of her running mate into nomination.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}According to the DNC, the convention chair would then declare that candidate to be the party's vice presidential nominee.