Vice President Kamala Harris is now formally the Democratic Party’s 2024 presidential nominee.
The Democratic National Committee (DNC) announced the news on Monday, following the conclusion of a five-day virtual roll call of pledged delegates to the party’s national convention, which kicks off in two weeks in Chicago.
The securing of the nomination comes hours before Harris is expected to announce her choice for running mate. The vice president and her to-be-announced running mate kick off a seven-battleground state swing Tuesday evening with a rally in Philadelphia.
Monday’s formal winning of the nomination came three days after Harris secured the votes of a majority of pledged delegates.
‘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 on Friday.
Harris, on a call Friday with supporters, said, ‘I am honored to be the presumptive Democratic nominee for President of the United States.’
The nomination of Harris was never in doubt, as the vice president was the only candidate to qualify for the presidential nomination roll call. But 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.
While the official nomination vote by the delegates was 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.
Harris’ formal winning of the nomination comes two weeks and one day after President Biden’s blockbuster announcement that he was ending his 2024 re-election campaign against former President Trump, the GOP’s nominee.
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.
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 the presidential nomination virtual roll call now concluded, DNC rules allow for Harris to place the name of her running mate into nomination.
According to the DNC, the convention chair would then declare that candidate to be the party’s vice presidential nominee.