With President Joe Biden officially exiting the presidential race, Vice President Kamala Harris is the most likely person to replace him as his successor as the Democratic presidential nominee.
Biden’s endorsement of his vice president opened the door to other big names throwing their support behind Harris, including Bill and Hillary Clinton and California Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Despite the endorsement from the President, he has no power over choosing whom those delegates will officially nominate. The convention delegates are not bound to party rules to back the candidate they’re pledged to support.
Biden still will hold sway over the delegates who were preparing to nominate him but delegates are free to make up their own minds. Democratic National Committee Chairman Jaime Harrison didn’t directly address what happens next but said decisions would need to be made quickly.
“In short order, the American people will hear from the Democratic Party on next steps and the path forward for the nomination process,” he said.
As Harris attempts to unify the Democratic Party, she begins with several advantages. She will retain several, if not all, of Biden’s campaign staff and she spent four years as a target for Republicans and the news media.
That means four years experience that no other potential candidate would have and that she has four years to prepare for those attacks. Harris is the only candidate who has access to the Biden campaign’s massive cash bank, which ended June with $96 million.
“Biden and Harris share a campaign committee,” said Trevor Potter, the president of the Campaign Legal Center and former chairman of the Federal Election Commission.
Democratic Rep. Jim Clyburn, a CBC veteran, and key Biden ally, endorsed Harris.
“Remember, 80 million people voted for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris in 2020 knowing that Kamala Harris would be ready to step up if needed,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren said.
