Week of Transition: Harris Emerges as Likely Nominee After Biden Exits Race

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris as they arrive to watch the Independence Day fireworks display from the Truman Balcony of the White House on July 4, 2024. President Biden on July 21 announced he is no longer seeking reelection and endorsed Ms. Harris. (MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)

In a whirlwind few days since President Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the presidential race, Vice President Kamala Harris has quickly ascended to the position of likely nominee of the Democratic Party.

Ms. Harris has secured key endorsements from party leaders, won over pledged delegates that the president won during the state primaries and caucuses, and established a campaign team to take on the Trump–Vance ticket.

Many top Democrats, including President Biden, have rallied around Ms. Harris as their party’s preferred candidate.

Several state delegations met late on July 22 to confirm their support for Ms. Harris, including those of Texas and her home state of California. By that night, the vice president had the support of at least 2,574 delegates, according to an Epoch Times tally—more than the 1,976 majority of delegates she’ll need to win on a first ballot.

She has also received nods from Democratic Party elites including former President Bill Clinton, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

On July 23, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) added their voices to the growing chorus of Democratic endorsement.

Ms. Harris pledged to unite the Democratic Party and win the 2024 election in her first campaign speech after President Biden announced his exit, in Milwaukee.

“I am so very honored, and I pledge to you: I will spend the coming weeks continuing to unite our party so that we are ready to win in November,” she told the crowd.

“We have 105 days until Election Day, and in that time, we’ve got some work to do, but we’re not afraid of hard work.”

Path to Vice Presidency

Ms. Harris was born in Oakland, California, on Oct. 20, 1964, the daughter of two immigrants. Her mother, Shyamala Gopalan, was a breast cancer scientist who left India for the United States at age 19. Her father, Donald Harris, is a Jamaican American who worked as a professor of economics at Stanford University.

Ms. Harris worked as a deputy district attorney in Alameda County, California, from 1990 to 1998 before joining the San Francisco district attorney’s office, and she was district attorney from 2004 to 2011.

Ms. Harris was elected as California’s attorney general in 2011 before delivering the address at the 2012 Democratic National Convention. She was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2017 as California’s junior senator.

Ms. Harris began a presidential campaign in 2019 but dropped out later that year. She served in the Senate until Jan. 18, 2021, when she resigned to assume the office of vice president.

Party Pressure

President Biden’s announcement to drop out of the 2024 presidential race ended more than three weeks of intense speculation regarding his candidacy.

A number of Democratic donors, lawmakers, and celebrities had called on President Biden to drop out after his debate against former President Donald Trump on June 27.

In an interview on July 5 with ABC News, the president joked that he would only consider dropping out if “the Lord Almighty” were to come down and tell him that he cannot beat former President Trump.

Later, in an interview on July 17 on BET News, he said he would reconsider his decision to run only if warned by doctors of a serious medical condition. White House staff consistently rejected rumors of his withdrawal, with one staff member saying on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter: “Incorrect. Keep the faith.”

Even while recovering from COVID-19 at his Rehoboth, Delaware, beach house last week, President Biden issued a statement saying that he “looked forward to getting back on the campaign trail.”

Earlier this month, during an interview on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” on July 8, he voiced his frustration toward those who urged him to step aside, particularly party elites, pundits, and donors.

Following President Biden’s decision to withdraw from the race, Ronald Klain, a close ally of the president and former White House chief of staff, articulated similar sentiments in a post on X on July 21.

“Now that the donors and electeds have pushed out the only candidate who has ever beaten Trump, it’s time to end the political fantasy games,” he wrote, urging Democrats and donors to unite behind Ms. Harris.

In his statement ending his campaign, President Biden said, “I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term.”

It is the end of a career in federal politics that began in 1972 when he was elected to the U.S. Senate at the age of 29.

“It’s very unusual for an incumbent president who has been seeking reelection to withdraw from the real reelection effort,” Karen Hult, a political science professor at Virginia Tech, told The Epoch Times. “The most analogous one in U.S. history would be in 1968 when Lyndon Johnson withdrew from the race.”

Ms. Hult said that “there’s some concern within the Democratic Party that this appears to be a top down decision made by party elites.”

Record Fundraising

Following President Biden’s announcement on July 21, Ms. Harris raised $81 million in the first 24 hours after starting her presidential bid, the highest single-day fundraising total for a candidate on record, according to a campaign announcement.

The Harris campaign stated that Democrats donated more than $100 million to the new campaign in less than 36 hours after President Biden withdrew.

About 1 million contributors were grassroots supporters, with 62 percent first-time donors, the campaign noted. Additionally, 43,000 individuals committed to becoming new recurring donors, and more than half of these individuals signed up for weekly donations, the campaign confirmed.

The funding haul occurred across multiple channels, including the Democratic National Committee and joint fundraising committees—the names were recently revised from Biden Victory to Harris Victory and Biden Action Fund to Harris Action Fund.

On the social media front, the campaign’s rapid response X account—switched from “Biden HQ to ”Kamala HQ"—doubled its followers overnight, topping 1 million.

“The historic outpouring of support for Vice President Harris represents exactly the kind of grassroots energy and enthusiasm that wins elections,” Kevin Munoz, a Harris campaign spokesperson, said in a statement. “Already, we are seeing a broad and diverse coalition come together to support our critical work of talking to the voters that will decide this election.”

After President Biden ended his reelection efforts, his $96 million war chest was transferred to the vice president’s campaign, according to Federal Election Commission data.

Running Mate

The next crucial decision for Ms. Harris will be selecting a running mate to complete the ticket.

Her campaign is reportedly vetting several potential vice presidential (VP) candidates.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, 51, is viewed as a strong VP candidate. He is known for his moderate stance and support for Israel. He also brings swing state influence.

Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), 60, is also favored by many in the party to be the VP pick. He has national recognition as a former NASA astronaut and Navy pilot. He’s married to former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.), who survived an assassination attempt in 2011. He and his wife are known for their gun control advocacy.

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper is also seen as a strong candidate. He has served as the governor of a crucial battleground state since 2017. Former President Trump won the state in 2016 and 2020.

Other names mentioned include Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Govs. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, Wes Moore of Maryland, Gavin Newsom of California, J.B. Pritzker of Illinois, and Andy Beshear of Kentucky.

Mr. Moore and Ms. Whitmer have already said that they are not interested in joining a Harris ticket.

“It’s going to be about balancing the ticket,” David Carlucci, a Democrat strategist and former New York state senator, told The Epoch Times.

Mr. Carlucci noted that the Harris campaign will be looking closely at who can propel the campaign in crucial battleground states.

Hence, he said he believes that Democrats from swing states “are going to be eyed very closely.”