Harris concedes the election, but not ‘the fight that fueled this campaign’

Vice President Kamala Harris offered an uplifting, positive charge to her supporters as she conceded the 2024 presidential election, acknowledging the stinging loss while committing to a peaceful transfer of power and vowing to “fight.”

Vice President Kamala Harris offered an uplifting, positive charge to her supporters as she conceded the 2024 presidential election, acknowledging the stinging loss while committing to a peaceful transfer of power and vowing to “fight” in a much different way than a defeated presidential candidate promised four years ago. “Earlier today, I spoke with President-elect (Donald) Trump and congratulated him on his victory. I also told him that we will help him and his team with their transition and that we will engage in a peaceful transfer of power,” she said in remarks at Howard University, her alma mater, in Washington, DC. In making the remarks, Harris did something her opponent refused to do in the aftermath of the 2020 election: Accept its results. “A fundamental principle of American democracy is that when we lose an election, we accept the results. … At the same time, in our nation, we owe loyalty not to a president or a party, but to the Constitution of the United States, and loyalty to our conscience and to our God. My allegiance to all three is why I am here to say: While I concede this election, I do not concede the fight that fueled this campaign,” she said. One hundred and eight days after her campaign began, the self-described “joyful warrior” spoke about her loss in determined terms as she sought to reassure the American people. “I know folks are feeling and experiencing a range of emotions right now. I get it. But we must accept the results of this election,” she said.