Vice President Kamala Harris encouraged a peaceful transfer of power and said America “must accept the results” of the 2024 presidential election during her concession speech Wednesday.
“A fundamental principle of American democracy is that when we lose an election we accept the results,” she said. “That principle, as much as any other, distinguishes democracy from monarchy or tyranny, and anyone who seeks the public’s trust must honor it.”
Harris, who became the Democratic Party’s nominee after President Joe Biden dropped out of the election in July, delivered her address at Howard University, her alma mater, in Washington, D.C.
Harris said that, before her speech, she called President-elect Donald Trump to concede the election and congratulate him.
“While I concede this election, I do not concede the fight that fueled this campaign. The fight, the fight for freedom, for opportunity, for fairness and the dignity of all people,” Harris said.
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