Kamala Harris launches presidential campaign after securing support from delegates

Insights from Politico and Forbes

The News

US Vice President Kamala Harris launched her presidential campaign as she secured enough support from delegates to clinch the Democratic nomination, two days after President Joe Biden announced he would step down from the race.

In just 24 hours, the Harris campaign raised a record $81 million in donations. “I am grateful to President Biden and everyone in the Democratic Party who has already put their faith in me, and I look forward to taking our case directly to the American people,” Harris said on Monday, drawing on her background as a prosecutor as she vowed to defeat Donald Trump.

SIGNALS

Harris works to adopt Biden’s campaign

Biden’s departure from the 2024 presidential race leaves Harris with just four months to build momentum in her campaign, Politico noted. Allies expect that she will capitalize on the current fervor surrounding her bid. “We’re building the plane while we’re flying it,” former South Carolina state Rep. Bakari Sellers told Politico. “She’s going to be everywhere. Her message will be everywhere. This is going to be unlike anything we’ve seen before. These won’t be baby steps. She’ll explode on the scene.” Meanwhile, nominating a vice-presidential pick could begin as early as next week, sources told the outlet.

Biden campaign funds will transfer to Harris

Biden’s campaign immediately transferred all of its funds to Harris, and applied to the Federal Election Commission to change the name of its primary campaign committee to “Harris for President.” Republicans have threatened legal action against the move, arguing that the fund was intended for the Biden campaign and could not be transferred to Harris. Legal experts, however, have said the move is sound: The campaign fund “is her shared committee with Joe Biden, so the money is hers,” making it “perfectly legal” for Harris to absorb the fundraising, one analyst told Forbes.