Democratic Party leaders across the nation have lined up to endorse a Harris presidency.
Vice President Kamala Harris secured a commanding list of endorsements for her presidential nomination bid in the hours that followed the announcement from President Joe Biden that he is stepping out of the 2024 race.
The list of endorsements included the chairs of all 50 state party chairs, convention delegates from at least four states, and some of the biggest names in the party, including the Clintons, the governors of California, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey, and Democrat mega-donor Alex Soros.
The growing coalition behind Ms. Harris, which started with the endorsement from the president, has all but assured her as the party’s nominee to face GOP nominee former President Donald Trump in November.
She may, nevertheless, face a challenger before the Democrat delegates cast their vote to finalize the nominee next month.
Ms. Harris has yet to name a running mate. On Sunday, she spoke to Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper.
President Biden endorsed Ms. Harris shortly after announcing his decision to pass the torch.
“My very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my Vice President. And it’s been the best decision I’ve made,” the president said on X.
“Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year.”
Ms. Harris said she is ready to work to “earn and win the nomination.”
“I will do everything in my power to unite the Democratic Party—and unite our nation—to defeat Donald Trump,” Ms. Harris said. “We have 107 days until Election Day. Together, we will fight. And together, we will win.”
Some Democrat donors, lawmakers, and celebrities had called on President Biden to drop out as the party nominee, scrutinizing his performance in the first presidential debate with former President Donald Trump on June 27.
The president had repeatedly said he had a “bad night,” was not sufficiently prepared, and initially committed to staying in the race. More than three dozen House Democrats and five senators publicly asked him to step aside.
By Ivan Pentchoukov, Emel Akan and Jacob Burg