99 percent of the votes: This is the final result of the nomination of Kamala Harris as the Democratic presidential candidate. But the more exciting question is: Who will she run with in the election?
After the conclusion of the US Democrats’ internal vote, Kamala Harris will go into the presidential election in November with full support. She received 99 percent of the approximately 4,500 delegate votes cast, the Democratic Party announced. She had already exceeded the threshold for the majority required for candidacy last week. Harris was the only candidate in the digital vote – her nomination now has to be formally sealed by the party’s leadership bodies.
The 59-year-old will soon announce which running mate she will be running with in the race for the White House against Republican Donald Trump. The first joint appearance with the currently unnamed candidate at her side is planned for Tuesday evening (local time) – at a campaign event in Philadelphia in the important swing state of Pennsylvania. After that, the Democratic duo will embark on a blitz campaign tour through the politically contested states of Wisconsin, Michigan, North Carolina, Georgia, Arizona and Nevada.
The selection of the vice-presidential candidate in the US election campaign is usually a complicated process, which now has to be carried out at a rapid pace – because Harris was chosen as a candidate at extremely short notice due to the long-unthinkable withdrawal of US President Joe Biden.
Will Josh Shapiro be chosen?
In addition to Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona, Governor Tim Walz of Minnesota and Governor Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, Governor JB Pritzker of Illinois, Governor Andy Beshear of Kentucky and Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg are also in the running for the vice presidential post. According to US media, Harris spoke with Kelly, Walz and Shapiro over the weekend.
The latter in particular is considered to have great chances – he has been considered for higher office for some time. As governor of Pennsylvania, Shapiro will definitely be at Harris’ rally in Philadelphia. The 51-year-old is relatively new to the national political stage, but very popular. Before his time as governor, he was attorney general in Pennsylvania. He is too conservative on important issues for Democrats on the left wing of the party. Many of them consider Tim Walz to be the better choice as vice presidential candidate.
Early online voting
There is great tension as to which forces in her party Harris will turn to in her decision and which she will possibly alienate. This also includes the tone Harris intends to set in the election campaign and the issues she hopes to use to score points with voters.
Harris rose to become the Democrats’ front woman in a dramatic turnaround after Biden withdrew from the race. The 81-year-old had come under increasing pressure from within his own ranks because of his age and doubts about his mental fitness and finally announced his withdrawal.
When he announced his withdrawal, Biden suggested his vice president as his replacement candidate. Within a few days, the party rallied behind Harris, who has since done better in the polls than Biden did before.
The nomination process was originally scheduled to take place at the Democratic Party Convention in Chicago from August 19 to 22. However, it was brought forward due to deadlines for printing ballot papers in some states. Party convention delegates from all states have been able to cast their votes since Thursday via an online platform. Voting ran until Monday evening (6 p.m. local time; midnight German time).
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
