LAST UPDATE | 22 Jul 2024

US VICE PRESIDENT Kamala Harris has praised Joe Biden’s “legacy of accomplishment” after the current US president dropped out of the race for the White House last night.

Biden had been under mounting pressure to step aside and endorsed Harris not long after announcing he would not seek re-election.

Harris was speaking from the White House today in her first public remarks since Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race.

She was speaking at an event celebrating college athletes – Biden had been due to make the remarks but is still recovering from a Covid infection.

Harris remarked that Biden “wanted to be here today” and that he is “feeling much better and recovering fast”.

She added that he “looks forward to getting back on the road”.

In her first public appearance since Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 race, Vice President Kamala Harris begins NCAA sports event at the White House by addressing President Biden’s legacy. pic.twitter.com/X4faEWPuoR

— Spencer Allan Brooks (@SpencerSays) July 22, 2024

Harris then said that Biden’s “legacy of accomplishment over the past three years is unmatched in modern history” and that he has “already surpassed the legacy of most presidents who have served two terms in office”.

The US Vice President said that she met Biden through his son Beau, who died from brain cancer in 2015 and was the attorney general of Delaware.

“We worked together as attorney generals in our states, and back then Beau would often tell me stories about his dad,” said Harris.

“He would talk about the kind of father and the kind of man that Joe Biden is. The qualities that Beau revered in his father, are the same qualities that I have seen every day in our president,” added Harris.

“I am firsthand witness that every day, our President Joe Biden fights for the American people and we are deeply, deeply grateful for his service to our nation.”

Endorsements roll in

Her remarks came as endorsements from leading Democrats and millions of dollars in campaign donations poured in swiftly last night for Harris’s campaign.

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a central powerbroker in the party, is the latest to back Harris.

Posting on X, Pelosi said she has “limitless optimism” for the nation’s future and she said has “full confidence that she will lead us to victory” in November’s election.

With immense pride and limitless optimism for our country’s future, I endorse Vice President Kamala Harris for President of the United States. I have full confidence that she will lead us to victory in November.
-NP pic.twitter.com/vBwv602GuR

— Nancy Pelosi (@TeamPelosi) July 22, 2024

Biden endorsed Harris not long after announcing the news in a post on social media yesterday and a number of the Democratic Party’s heavy hitters followed suit, while some notable figures like former president Barack Obama have been keeping quiet on that front.

Big names in the party like House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer have also held off on endorsing Harris.

“We will be navigating uncharted waters in the days ahead,” Obama said in a statement in the wake of Biden’s announcement.

“But I have extraordinary confidence that the leaders of our party will be able to create a process from which an outstanding nominee emerges.”

Since the president’s announcement, the Biden-Harris campaign has rebranded as ‘Harris for President’, changing the official name in papers filed with the Federal Election Commission. 

I endorse Vice President Kamala Harris. pic.twitter.com/UWMsVmOk8M

— Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) July 22, 2024

Democratic fundraising group ActBlue said last night that it had seen its biggest single-day haul of the 2024 election.

“As of 9pm ET, grassroots supporters have raised $46.7 million through ActBlue following Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign launch. This has been the biggest fundraising day of the 2024 cycle,” said a post on X by the group, which facilitates online fundraising for Democratic candidates.

Some of those who have announced their support for Harris to become the party’s nominee include figures who had been seen as potential rivals, but will now likely be angling for a spot on the ticket as her running mate. They include California Governor Gavin Newsom and his Pennsylvania counterpart Josh Shapiro.

“She’s ready to do this job and she’s going to win,” said Senator Elizabeth Warren.

I will do all that I can to help elect @KamalaHarris the next President of the United States. pic.twitter.com/bHkiqpa7Lg

— Pete Buttigieg (@PeteButtigieg) July 21, 2024

“A lot of big dominos have fallen, including almost all of the major, potential contenders who might have challenged her. Hard to see any other outcome here than her nomination,” Democratic former White House strategist David Axelrod wrote on X, calling Harris’ sudden momentum a “shock-and-awe campaign.”

Writing on X, Newsom said: “With our democracy at stake and our future on the line, no one is better to prosecute the case against Donald Trump’s dark vision and guide our country in a healthier direction than America’s Vice President, Kamala Harris.”

Kamala Harris will be the next President of the United States. I pledge my full support to ensure her victory in November.

Now more than ever, it is crucial that our party and country swiftly unite to defeat Donald Trump and the threat to American democracy.

Let’s get to work.

— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) July 22, 2024

Meanwhile North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper said Harris “should be the next president,” and Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, who like Harris sought the Democratic nomination in 2020, said he would “do all that I can to help her win this election.”

Influential Democrats including Bill and Hillary Clinton, John Kerry and a raft of Democratic members of Congress, including left-wing ‘Squad’ member Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez also endorsed Harris.

With reporting from AFP, Diarmuid Pepper and Eoghan Dalton