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Vice President Kamala Harris has secured enough delegates to win the Democratic nomination for president.
On Monday evening, CNN, Bloomberg, and The Wall Street Journal calculated that Harris had met the threshold of 1,976 pledged delegate endorsements to secure the nomination. More endorsements are expected to trickle in.
"When I announced my campaign for President, I said I intended to go out and earn this nomination," Harris said in a statement following the news. "Tonight, I am proud to have secured the broad support needed to become our party's nominee, and as a daughter of California, I am proud that my home state's delegation has helped put our campaign over the top. I look forward to formally accepting the nomination soon."
Harris also expressed her gratitude to President Joe Biden and the rest of the Democratic party for its support and summarized the differences between her platform and that of former President Donald Trump.
"This election will present a clear choice between two different visions," Harris' statement read. "Donald Trump wants to take our country back to a time before many of us had full freedoms and equal rights. I believe in a future that strengthens our democracy, protects reproductive freedom and ensures every opportunity to not just get by, but get ahead."
Harris' securing the support of the majority of Democratic delegates comes the day after Biden announced his plan to drop out of the race and his endorsement of the vice president as his pick to replace him.
Since Biden's announcement and endorsement, the Democratic party has rallied behind Harris, and the vice president has raked in record-breaking donations totaling more than $81 million in a single day.
While there was initial speculation that other high-profile Democrats, such as California Gov. Gavin Newsom or Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, might step into the race, no major players in the party have stepped forward to challenge Harris. Whitmer instead endorsed Harris.
In her first public speech since Biden dropped out of the race, Harris previewed her vision for her first term as president and emotionally thanked Biden for his service to the country and support in the race.
She also flexed her muscle as a former prosecutor, declaring herself ready for a contentious — and perhaps legally contested — battle against Trump.
"I took on perpetrators of all kinds," Harris said, speaking Monday in a public address to campaign staffers in Delaware. "Predators who abused women, fraudsters who ripped off consumers, cheaters who broke the rules for their own gain. So hear me when I say — I know Donald Trump's type."
