Harris secures enough votes to become US presidential candidate - AP
Photo: US Vice President Kamala Harris (Getty Images)
US Vice President Kamala Harris has won enough delegate votes to become the Democratic presidential nominee, Associated Press reports.
A poll of delegates conducted by the news agency showed that Harris received the support of 2,538 delegates, well above the 1,976 needed to win the first round. None of the delegates contacted by AP named any other candidate.
In particular, California state Democratic Chairman Rusty Hicks said that 75-80% of the state's delegation was on a conference call on Tuesday and unanimously supported Harris.
“I’ve not heard anyone mentioning or calling for any other candidate. Tonight’s vote was a momentous one,” Hicks says.
The AP also notes that after US President Joe Biden dropped out of the race, Harris' campaign set a new 24-hour record for donations to the presidency. It was about $81 million per day.
At the same time, the agency does not name Kamala Harris as the new presumptive nominee. This is because convention delegates are still free to vote for a candidate at the convention in August or if Democrats hold a virtual roll call before the convention in Chicago.
In a statement, Harris responded to the AP's calculations by saying that she is grateful to Biden and everyone in the Democratic Party who has already shown their trust.
"I look forward to taking our case directly to the American people,” she adds.
The Democratic presidential candidate will be nominated by August 7. However, the date of online voting has not yet been set.
Earlier, RBC-Ukraine reported that Biden would remain president of the United States until the end of his term. This was the head of state's response to some Republicans who, after Biden's withdrawal from the election race, called on him to resign early.
