US Democrats are largely supporting the announcement Vice President Kamala Harris is launching a bid to run for the top job, as President Joe Biden withdraws from the race.
Donations to the party's election campaign have surged on the back of the news Harris was being endorsed by Biden after he ended his run for the 2024 election.
In a post on X, Biden said he would remain in his role as president and commander-in-chief until his term ends in January 2025. He had faced vocal opposition from within his party, particularly after his performance in the first official debate against his Republican opponent Donald Trump, and has not been seen in public since testing positive for Covid-19 last week.
Harris now has to convince her party to officially vote her in as their candidate. But New York-based correspondent Mitch McCann told Checkpoint that Democrats are so far largely supporting her.
Senior Democratic Party representatives have issued their own statement backing Harris, saying she has a track record of winning tough elections and is a proven leader.
"In the 12 hours she's started running for the top job she's received a lot of endorsements, and a lot of money," McCann told Checkpoint.
"They are getting behind [Harris] for the simple fact that no one of prominence within the Democrats is trying to take her on at this stage."
However, there are some big names from the Democratic Party who have not endorsed her, McCann said: "Among them Barack Obama, Nancy Pelosi [and] Chuck Schumer, the Senate majority leader.
"But it's important to note that it's been reported here in the US they're not endorsing Kamala Harris because as party leaders they see it as their role to be impartial and fair in case someone else wants to challenge her - it's not because they don't like her, they just want to be fair."
Democratic delegates vote for their party's official presidential nominee in their primary elections, set for 19-22 August. To get the nomination, Harris must get the majority vote from approximately 4600 delegates, which could take several rounds of voting.
- Reuters / RNZ
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