DNC virtual roll call kicks off to elect Kamala Harris as the sole candidate on ballot
Queen Kamala’s about to get her crown.
The Democratic National Committee on Thursday began its virtual roll call to elect Vice President Kamala Harris – the only candidate who qualified to be on delegates’ ballots – starting the official process to make her the party nominee weeks before the in-person convention.
The virtual roll call process will end Monday evening, two weeks before the delegates take to the convention floor in Chicago where they would usually nominate the presidential candidate.
Harris is the only candidate who reached the 300-delegate minimum to be on the ballot, meaning she will almost certainly be elected to replace President Biden on the top of the 2024 ticket weeks after he dropped out of the race following concerns over his mental acuity and electability.
How does the virtual roll call work?
The DNC delegates have from 9 a.m. Thursday until 6 p.m. Monday to cast their “secure” electronic ballots for their chosen candidate. The process is similar to the one that took place in 2020 during the COVID pandemic.
The DNC said Harris was the sole person to qualify for the delegate threshold by Tuesday night. She received 3,923 petitions from delegates, securing the support of 99% of participating delegates, with 84% of all 4,700 delegates submitting their ballot in time.
If candidates vote for someone other than Harris, their vote will be counted as “present.”
Because Harris got the “verified support of a number of pledged delegates equal to or greater than a majority of all pledged and automatic delegates,” both pledged and superdelegates will have the opportunity to vote in the virtual roll call, the DNC said.
What about Biden’s pledged delegates?
The president won the vast majority of delegates during the Democratic primary. His suspension of his campaign didn’t automatically assign the delegates over to Harris, but a majority has already said they would vote for the vice president to become the nominee.
Why the virtual roll call?
The DNC voted July 24 to do the virtual roll call out of concern of ensuring Harris would be on every state ballot, as some states have deadlines to elect the nominee before the convention.
Ohio has an early deadline of Aug. 7, and Democrats are concerned Republicans would litigate Harris’ ability to be on the ballot if the nomination happened after the deadline at the convention.
“An in-person convention simply cannot meet the ballot access certification requirements in each of the states necessary,” DNC outside counsel Patrick Moore said on a DNC rules committee call.
What does it mean for Harris’ VP?
The virtual roll call deadline also means Harris will have to name her vice presidential pick before the Aug. 7 deadline to make Ohio’s ballot.
Harris, 59, has already reportedly sent out vetting materials to a number of candidates including Arizona Sen. Mark Kelley, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, among others.
She’s expected to announce her VP pick before Aug. 5.
The DNC won’t vote for the VP pick. Instead, the candidate will be simply declared the nominee.
The DNC has stressed the process will be “democratic” and “transparent.”
“Our delegates have an important responsibility – and opportunity – in the days ahead to cast their history-making ballots for Vice President Harris, ensuring that she will be on the ballot in every state this November,” DNC Chair Jaime Harrison and DNCC Chair Minyon Moore said in a statement.
“Our Party has met this unprecedented moment with a transparent, democratic, and orderly process to unite behind a nominee with a proven record who will lead us in the fight ahead. We look forward to celebrating together with all of our delegates in Chicago, where we will show up in full force as a strong, united Party laser-focused on defeating Donald Trump and JD Vance in November,” the Democratic leaders added.
