WASHINGTON: US Vice President Kamala Harris on Monday secured a crucial endorsement from Democratic heavyweight Nancy Pelosi to lead the party against Donald Trump in November after Joe Biden's surprise exit from the 2024 race.
As endorsements piled up, Harris, 59, made her first public appearance since Biden's announcement at a White House ceremony, where she warmly praised the outgoing president's “unparalleled” achievements.
But while she has shied away from any triumphalism, Harris will now feel she has the prize in her hand after securing the support of former US House Speaker Pelosi.
“With immense pride and boundless optimism for the future of our country, I endorse Vice President Kamala Harris for President of the United States,” Pelosi, 84, said on X.
“I have every confidence that she will lead us to victory in November.”
A wave of Democratic leaders have endorsed Harris as the party's new nominee, building momentum for a lightning-fast coronation despite some calls for transparency with an open primary.
Biden, 81, endorsed Harris, the first Black and South Asian vice president in U.S. history, as she dropped out of the race on Sunday in the culmination of a crisis sparked by a disastrous debate performance with Trump.
Then came endorsements from former President Bill Clinton and a number of lawmakers, but notably former President Barack Obama has so far abstained.
'Peerless'
In a strikingly symbolic moment, Harris hosted a ceremony for college athletes at the White House on Monday as Biden remained in Covid isolation at his Delaware beach house.
“Joe Biden's legacy of accomplishments over the last three years is unmatched in modern history,” Harris said in her brief remarks on the South Lawn of the White House as light rain fell.
However, some of his sporting metaphors seemed to reference the political career ahead, as he spoke of taking home the gold and “what it means to commit and persevere.”
Harris will make a first trip to campaign headquarters in Wilmington, Delaware, later Monday, not far from Rehoboth Beach, where Biden has been recovering from his Covid infection since last week.
Biden's symptoms “have almost completely resolved,” his doctor said in a statement Monday, though the White House has yet to announce any events on his schedule this week.
Harris' campaign said it had raised an astonishing $49.6 million in grassroots donations since Sunday.
Several other top Democrats have endorsed Harris, including several considered her potential running mates.
“Let's win this,” Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer posted.
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear also declared his support, as did Illinois Governor JB Pritzker.
Harris still needs to beat out some of the front-runners if she wants to secure the nomination, but that could happen as early as a remote vote on Aug. 1, or failing that, at the Democratic National Convention that begins Aug. 19.
'Threat to democracy'
Biden's shock withdrawal has upended the 2024 race, transforming a long-running battle between two unpopular old men into one of the most thrilling in modern US presidential history.
The move has provided a shot in the arm for a demoralized party that Harris could now unify and potentially give the United States its first female president.
It has also hit Republicans hard, as former President Trump, 78 (now the oldest presidential candidate in US history), has had to completely restructure a strategy that had been built around attacking Biden for his age and physical frailty.
Harris's entry not only turns the age question on its head, but pits Trump — a convicted felon who has faced a series of sexual assault lawsuits — against a woman and former prosecutor.
Trump appears to have found it difficult to move on from his former opponent.
On Sunday and Monday, after Biden resigned, she launched a series of insult-filled social media posts, mocking the president's age and saying he and Harris posed a “threat to democracy.”
But the challenges facing Harris remain daunting, with less than four months until Election Day.
The vice president has long suffered from low approval ratings after a mediocre first two years in the White House. In polls that have looked at a head-to-head, she is virtually tied with Trump.
