Vice President Kamala Harris conceded the 2024 election to Donald Trump on Wednesday afternoon. Speaking from Howard University, her alma mater, Harris directly addressed her young supporters, urging them to stay positive and to “keep fighting” for “the extraordinary promise of the United States of America.”
Harris, whose defeat devastated the millions of people determined to close the chapter on Trump, said her “heart is full today—full of gratitude for the trust you have placed in me, full of love for our country, and full of resolve.” Acknowledging that “the outcome of this election is not what we wanted, not what we fought for, not what we voted for,” she asked supporters to “hear me when I say…the light of America’s promise will always burn bright as long as we never give up and as long as we keep fighting.”
David Hume Kennerly
Saying she knows that “folks are feeling and experiencing a range of emotions right now,” Harris nevertheless stressed that “we must accept the results of this election,” which, of course, was not the case for the losing candidate in 2020. The VP said that she “spoke with President-elect Trump” and told him that “we will help him and his team with their transition and that we will engage in a peaceful transfer of power,” because “a fundamental principle of American democracy is that when we lose an election, we accept the results,” and “anyone who seeks the public trust must honor it.”
David Hume Kennerly
“At the same time,“ Harris continued, “in our nation we owe loyalty not to a president or party, but to the Constitution of the United States, and loyalty to our conscience and to our god…. While I concede this election, I do not concede the fight that fueled this campaign—the fight for freedom, for opportunity, for fairness and the dignity of all people…. That is a fight I will never give up.”
Referring to the Republican assault on reproductive rights, Harris said she would specifically “never give up the fight for a future where…the women of America have the freedom to make decisions about their own body and not have their government telling them what to do.” She also vowed to keep working to protect “our schools and our streets from gun violence,” and pledged to “never give up the fight for our democracy, for the rule of law, for equal justice, and for the sacred idea that every one of us…has certain fundamental rights and freedoms that must be respected and upheld.” She called on the crowd to treat “one another with kindness and respect” and to use “our strength to lift people up.”
David Hume Kennerly
“To everyone who is watching, do not despair,” Harris urged, later saying, “I’ll close with this: There’s an adage an historian once called ‘a law of history.’ True of every society across the ages. The adage is, only when it is dark enough can you see the stars. I know many people feel like we are entering a dark time, but for the benefit of us all, I hope that is not the case. But here’s the thing: America, if it is, let us fill the sky with the light of a brilliant, brilliant billion of stars. The light of optimism, of faith, of truth and service.”
David Hume Kennerly
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