The day that catapulted Kamala Harris to within striking distance of becoming the Democratic nominee for president of the United States was marked by a series of phone calls.
Harris had several phone conversations with President Biden before he announced Sunday morning that he was ending his reelection campaign, according to a person familiar with Harris’s activities on Sunday. The announcement, which she posted on X, shook the political world and came after calls for her not to seek a second term grew after a disastrous debate against Donald Trump.
From there, Harris spoke with more than 100 Democrats, including members of Congress, governors and labor and civil rights leaders, the source said.
“In each of those calls, the vice president made it clear that she was extremely grateful for the president’s endorsement, but that she plans to work hard to win the Democratic nomination in her own right,” the source said.
Dressed in a Howard University hoodie, Harris served salad, sandwiches and anchovy pizza to her aides as she spent about 10 hours on phone calls with Democratic leaders Sunday at her residence at the U.S. Naval Observatory, the source said.
Among the people she spoke to was her pastor, Amos Brown III, who prayed with her.
As news of Biden's nomination spread, Harris quickly began to gain endorsements from many of the most prominent people in her party.
Though Democrats have said they will have an open contest to select their nominee, many of the party’s leaders have endorsed Harris, including Govs. Gavin Newsom of California, Roy Cooper of North Carolina, Kathy Hochul of New York, Janet Mills of Maine, Phil Murphy of New Jersey, Jared Polis of Colorado and Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, as well as Sens. Laphonza Butler and Alex Padilla of California, Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, Bob Casey of Pennsylvania, Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada, Chris Coons of Delaware, Mark Kelly of Arizona, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York and John Hickenlooper of Colorado.
There are also signs of spikes in fundraising since the announcement.
Biden's announcement ends weeks of Lamentations among party leaders who urged him to drop out of the race after his disastrous performance in last month's debate left many Democrats fearing he was too old for the job and could not defeat former President Trump.
“I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to step down and focus exclusively on fulfilling my duties as president for the remainder of my term,” Biden said in a statement. He said he will address the nation later this week.
In his initial statement, Biden did not endorse Harris, but later expressed his support for her in a post on X.
“My first decision as our party’s nominee in 2020 was to choose Kamala Harris as my Vice President. And it has been the best decision I have ever made. Today, I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be our party’s nominee this year. Democrats, it’s time to come together and defeat Trump. Let’s do it,” Biden wrote.
In her own statement, Harris thanked Biden for his “extraordinary leadership.”
“I am honored to have the president’s endorsement and intend to win this nomination,” she said. “I will do everything in my power to unite the Democratic Party — and our nation — to defeat Donald Trump and his extreme Project 2025 agenda.”
Thanks to his victories in Democratic primaries and caucuses in states and territories across the United States, Biden has gathered nearly 4,000 party delegates who have pledged to vote for him to be the party's nominee at the Democratic National Convention, which is scheduled to begin on August 19 in Chicago.
Her exit from the race means those delegates are now free to choose another candidate. They are not committed to Harris.
Choosing a new candidate will be their main task at the convention.
Jaime Harrison, the party's chairman, said in a statement Sunday that “the work we must do now, while unprecedented, is clear.”
Times staff writers Kevin Rector and Faith E. Phino contributed to this report.
