Watch full Kamala Harris concession speech; VP congratulates Trump
Vice President Kamala Harris officially conceded the 2024 election to Trump, after he was projected to become the 47th U.S. president. Watch the replay of her concession speech in the YouTube player above.
"While I concede this election, I do not concede the fight that fulled this campaign," she told the crowd of supporters at alma mater Howard University.
US Vice President Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris speaks at Howard University in Washington, DC, on November 6, 2024. (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)
She called President-elect Donald Trump on Wednesday to congratulate him on his election victory, a senior Harris aide told the Associated Press. The aide said Harris discussed the importance of a peaceful transfer of power with Trump ahead of her planned concession speech Wednesday afternoon.
Trump was declared the winner early Wednesday by the Associated Press and others, having surpassed the 270 electoral votes needed to clinch the presidency.
Walking on to Beyoncé’s "Freedom," her concession outlined the contours of future fights against the president-elect.
"We will continue to wage this fight in the voting booth, in the courts and in the public square," Harris said, a nod to the work Democrats are poised to do in the next four years.
Harris attempted to focus on the future work Democrats need to do.
"I will never give up a fight for a future where Americans can pursue their dreams ambitions and aspirations," she said. America, she added, "will never give up the fight for our democracy."
Harris launched her White House bid just four months ago after President Joe Biden dropped out of the race. Her modified campaign centered a lot of her message on Trump and a warning of the threat she said he posed to U.S. democracy and abortion protections. She targeted the traditional Democratic base — African Americans, Latinos and young people — but also sought to win over disaffected Republicans.
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However, Trump managed to win both nationwide and in key swing states with voters who were alarmed about the economy and prioritized more aggressive enforcement of immigration laws.
Anxiety about inflation was particularly high nationally, according to AP VoteCast, a sweeping survey of more than 120,000 voters nationwide.
Voters broadly believed that Trump would be better equipped than Harris, Biden’s current vice president, to handle the economy and jobs. The key swing states of Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Michigan largely mirrored the mood of the nation, the survey found.
The AP’s VoteCast survey found that Trump picked up a small but significant share of younger voters, Black voters and Hispanic voters – many of whom were feeling down about the economy. Majorities of younger Black voters and Latino voters said the economy is not working well, according to the survey.
Donald Trump victory speech
Meanwhile, Trump appeared before a cheering crowd at his Mar-a-Lago election watch party in Florida, following FOX News' early projection of his win.
Trump, 78, will begin his second term early next year after losing his first reelection bid to Biden in 2020. It was an extraordinary comeback for Trump, who refused to accept defeat four years ago and helped spark the U.S. Capitol riot, was convicted of felony charges, and survived two assassination attempts.
In a victory speech early Wednesday, Trump told the crowd: "Every citizen, I will fight for you, for your family and your future."
"This will truly be the golden age of America," Trump said. "This is a magnificent victory for the American people that will allow us to make America great again."