Former Vice-President Joe Biden is no longer the presumptive Democratic nominee, CBS News reported on Saturday. The District of Columbia, Indiana, Maryland, Montana, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and South Dakota held their primaries on Tuesday, and once the votes were all counted, Biden had earned the 1,991 delegates needed to make him the official nominee of the Democratic Party.
Biden became the presumptive nominee when Bernie Sanders dropped out of the race on April 8, according to CBS News . After losing the Wisconsin primary, the Vermont senator officially suspended his campaign . Since Biden was the only candidate left with enough delegates to possibly win the nomination outright, he became the presumptive nominee.
Though it was fairly clear that Biden would be the presidential nominee of the Democratic Party, he had to wait a long time before it became official, per CBS News . The coronavirus pandemic forced several states to delay their primaries, which meant that Biden was caught in limbo for almost two months. Without the necessary 1,991 delegates, he couldn’t be the official nominee, but without the primaries happening, he couldn’t secure the required delegate count. With the latest round of primaries, he finally crossed the finish line.
Biden talked about the eventful primary season and how the Democratic Party will move forward into November’s election in a post to Medium on Friday evening.
“It was an honor to compete alongside one of the most talented groups of candidates the Democratic party has ever fielded — and I am proud to say that we are going into this general election a united party,” Biden wrote.
“I am going to spend every day between now and November 3rd fighting to earn the votes of Americans all across this great country…”
In that same post, Biden made it clear that he is ready to be the leader of his party and the whole country.
“The country is crying out for leadership. Leadership that can unite us… We need an economy that works for everyone — now. We need jobs that bring dignity — now. We need equal justice — and equal opportunities — for every American now. We need a president who cares about helping us heal — now.”
The nomination process will conclude when Biden is formally nominated at the Democratic National Convention, Vox reported. Biden isn’t allowed to use funds raised by the Democratic National Committee for the general election until he’s formally nominated at the convention.
According to Vox, the Democratic National Convention was slated to take place in mid-July but was postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic. The convention is now scheduled for the week of August 17.
