Historic fundraising surge: Harris endorsed by Biden after debate fallout

Kamala Harris raised $81 million in donations over the past 24 hours for the Democrats' campaign. "This is the largest 24-hour fundraiser in history," her campaign team wrote on platform X. On Sunday, Joe Biden withdrew from the presidential race, endorsing Harris.

According to CBS News, "this staggering amount" underscores the vice president's enormous financial advantage over potential Democratic contenders. Although Joe Biden, by stepping out of the election race, pointed to Kamala Harris as his successor in the race to the White House, it is formally the delegates at the Democratic convention who nominate the candidate. That will take place in August.

The Democrats' campaign team reported that over the last 24 hours, more than 888,000 small donors made contributions. For 60% of them, it was their first donation to this election campaign. The day before, Harris raised $50 million for the Democrats' campaign.

"The historic rise in support for Vice President Harris precisely reflects the kind of grassroots energy and enthusiasm that wins elections," said Kevin Munoz, spokesperson for Kamala Harris's campaign.

Joe Biden withdrew from the campaign after dozens of Democrats called on him to step down following his "disastrous performance in the debate at the end of June." Biden announced his decision on Sunday evening.

Delegates are people who nominate the presidential candidate by casting their vote. When Biden withdrew, the delegates—legally bound to name him the nominee—gained complete freedom to choose whom they wanted.

However, the key factor is that they are loyal to Joe Biden, having been selected by his campaign team. Therefore, there is little risk that they will not follow the president's wishes. The most likely scenario is that Biden will ask them to support Harris, and from August 19-22, she will be officially nominated as the Democratic candidate.