Kamala Harris pledges to 'earn and win' Democratic nomination after Biden's endorsement

US Vice President Kamala Harris vowed to “earn and win” the Democratic presidential nomination hours after President Joe Biden exited the race to the White House. On Sunday, Biden left the United States speechless after he announced that he won’t be running for the the re-election to the Oval Office.

Minutes later he issued a separate statement in which he endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to take on former US President Donald Trump in the 2024 Presidential Elections. In her statement after Biden’s endorsement, the Indian-origin politician thanked the POTUS for his leadership over the year and pledged to “do everything … to unite the Democratic Party” and the nation.

“With this selfless and patriotic act, President Biden is doing what he has done throughout his life of service: putting the American people and our country above everything else,” Harris said in a statement on Sunday.

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I will do everything in my power to unite the Democratic Party—and unite our nation—to defeat Donald Trump and his extreme Project 2025 agenda. If you’re with me, add a donation right now.https://t.co/xpPDkCRhoZ

— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) July 21, 2024

“I am honoured to have the President’s endorsement and my intention is to earn and win this nomination. Over the past year, I have travelled across the country, talking with Americans about the clear choice in this momentous election. And that is what I will continue to do in the days and weeks ahead. I will do everything in my power to unite the Democratic Party—and unite our nation—to defeat Donald Trump and his extreme Project 2025 agenda,” she added.

Biden is ‘done’ but Kamala is just getting started 

In a surprising statement on Sunday, Biden announced that he is dropping out of the presidential race. The decision came amid growing calls for Biden to pass on the baton. Throughout his presidency and during the election campaign trail, there have been concerns about Biden’s age and his mental acuity.

The 81-year-old president garnered more criticism after his deplorable performance in his first 2024 presidential debate against his Republican rival Donald Trump. The proclamation from POTUS came days after he was diagnosed with COVID-19, due to which he had to be kept in complete isolation.

“It has been the greatest honour of my life to serve as your President,” Biden wrote in a letter posted to his official account on X, formally known as Twitter. “And while it has been my intention to seek reelection, 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," he furthered.

pic.twitter.com/RMIRvlSOYw

— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) July 21, 2024

While endorsing Harris, Biden lauded his 2020 running mate and urged the Democrats to rally behind her. “My very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my Vice President,” Biden wrote. “And it’s been the best decision I’ve made. Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year.”

My fellow Democrats, I have decided not to accept the nomination and to focus all my energies on my duties as President for the remainder of my term. 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… pic.twitter.com/x8DnvuImJV

— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) July 21, 2024

Funds started pouring in after Biden’s exit 

Interestingly, following Biden’s Sunday announcement, the Democratic money machine came back into business. After Biden announced that he was stepping aside, large and small donors began digging back into their pockets.

ActBlue, the leading Democratic online donation processor, stated that Democratic donors gave a whopping $46.7 million in small-dollar donations through the platform for the day by 9 pm (local time). The figure contributed to ActBlue’s biggest day of 2024 with hours left to go.

Not only this, experts believe that much more is expected to flow in and is already being pledged by large-dollar donors. “The floodgates will open,” Chris Korge, finance chair for the Biden Victory Fund, told NBC News. “There’s been a lot of people holding back contributions that will now contribute because the whole thing — that whole situation was paralyzing our fundraising.”