US Vice President Kamala Harris.
Credit: Reuters Photo
Washington: Kamala Harris has said she plans to "earn and win" the Democratic presidential nomination to defeat Donald Trump after President Joe Biden decided not to seek re-election, putting her on the path to become the first Black woman and first Asian-American to lead a major political party's ticket.
Vice President Harris, 59, said she was “honoured” to receive Biden’s endorsement and voiced her appreciation for his extraordinary leadership as President of the United States and his decades of service to the country.
“I am honoured to have the President’s endorsement and my intention is to earn and win this nomination,” she said in a statement on Sunday.
The historic endorsement came after Biden, 81, announced Sunday that he is dropping out of the race following weeks of disarray within the Democratic Party. Biden's disastrous first presidential debate with his Republican rival and former president Donald Trump called into question his ability to win a second term and govern for another four years.
Despite Biden's backing, it remains unclear whether Harris will become the nominee, or what process the Democratic Party would take to select an alternative.
Democratic National Committee chairman Jaime Harrison said in a statement that in the coming days, the party will “undertake a transparent and orderly process to move forward as a united Democratic Party with a candidate who can defeat Donald Trump in November.” Though Biden's endorsement almost seals her position as the presidential nominee of her party, Harris still needs to get elected by the party's delegates during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago from August 19-22.
Biden has won 3,896 delegates as against 1,976 required to win the party's presidential nomination.
In a move that would give her access to the campaign funds, the Biden-Harris campaign amended filings with the Federal Election Commission to rename its principal committee and declare Harris a candidate for president.
Following Biden's decision, Harris, who has been serving as the US' first female, first Black and first South Asian vice president since 2021, immediately secured the endorsement of former president Bill Clinton, thus making it a bit easier for her to win the delegate battle during the party convention.
"On behalf of the American people, I thank Joe Biden for his extraordinary leadership as President of the United States and for his decades of service to our country," she said.
Harris said over the past year, she has travelled across the country, talking to Americans about the clear choice in this momentous election.
"And that is what I will continue to do in the days and weeks ahead. I will do everything in my power to unite the Democratic Party -- and unite our nation-- to defeat Donald Trump and his extreme Project 2025 agenda... We have 107 days until Election Day. Together, we will fight. And together, we will win," she said.
Meanwhile, the “overwhelming majority” of state Democratic Party chairs have announced their support for Vice President Harris as their nominee for president, the Association of State Democratic Committees (ASDC) said in a statement.
“I am proud that state party chairs, vice-chairs, and executive directors across the country are overwhelmingly uniting behind Vice President Kamala Harris,” ASDC President Ken Martin said in a statement.
Bill Clinton and former secretary of state Hillary Clinton quickly endorsed Harris to be the nominee. "We've lived through many ups and downs, but nothing has made us more worried for our country than the threat posed by a second Trump term," they said in a joint statement.
"He has promised to be a dictator on day one, and the recent ruling by his servile Supreme Court will only embolden him to further shred the Constitution. Now is the time to support Kamala Harris and fight with everything we've got to elect her," the Clintons said.
However, former president Barack Obama and ex-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi have not yet endorsed Harris as the Democratic Party's nominee for the November 5 general elections.
"We will be navigating uncharted waters in the days ahead. But I have extraordinary confidence that the leaders of our party will be able to create a process from which an outstanding nominee emerges," Obama said in a statement.
In her statement, Harris thanked Biden on behalf of the country's people for his extraordinary leadership and said, "His remarkable legacy of accomplishment is unmatched in modern American history, surpassing the legacy of many Presidents who have served two terms in office." "It is a profound honour to serve as his vice president, and I am deeply grateful to the President, Dr Biden, and the entire Biden family," she said.
With this selfless and patriotic act, President Biden is doing what he has done throughout his life of service: putting the American people and the country above everything else, she added.
Three Indian-American lawmakers- Ro Khanna, Shri Thanedar, and Pramila Jayapal - threw their weight behind Harris.
Several prominent Indian Americans on Sunday welcomed the prospect of Harris becoming the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee and described it as a historic moment for this small ethnic community.
Harris was born to immigrant parents -- a Black father and an Indian mother. Her father, Donald Harris, was from Jamaica, and her mother Shyamala Gopalan was a cancer researcher and civil rights activist from Chennai.
She grew up in Oakland and spent much of her political career in California’s Bay Area. After earning her law degree from the University of California, Hastings College of Law, she became a deputy district attorney for Alameda County. She later served in the San Francisco district attorney and city attorney offices.
In 2003, she was elected district attorney for San Francisco. Seven years later, she was elected California’s attorney general - the first woman, first Black person and first Asian American to hold the position.
In 2016, Harris won her bid to succeed outgoing California Senator Barbara Boxer, becoming the second Black woman to ever serve in the US Senate.
Three years later, in January 2019, she entered the Democratic presidential primary.
In November 2020, she made history by becoming the first woman elected vice president. She also earned the distinction of becoming the first Black person and the first person of Asian descent to be voted into the office.
And if elected to office in November, Harris would notably become the first-ever woman to hold office as the president of the United States - a barrier that Clinton tried to break in 2016, when Trump was elected to office.