Harris Concedes Election at Howard University, Pledges Peaceful Transfer of Power
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris delivered remarks on the afternoon of November 6 at Howard University in Washington, D.C., formally conceding defeat in the 2024 presidential election. Howard University is Harris's alma mater and was the site of her campaign's election-night headquarters; she did not speak on election night and returned the following afternoon to address supporters. The remarks ran from 4:25 p.m. to 4:37 p.m. EST.
Harris said she had spoken earlier that day with President-elect Trump, congratulated him on his victory, and told him that she and her team would help him and his team with their transition and engage in a peaceful transfer of power. "We must accept the results of this election," she said, calling acceptance of election results a fundamental principle of American democracy that distinguishes democracy from monarchy or tyranny and that anyone who seeks the public trust must honor.
She added: "While I concede this election, I do not concede the fight that fueled this campaign." That fight, she said, was for freedom, opportunity, fairness and the dignity of all people; for a future in which American women have the freedom to make decisions about their own bodies; to protect schools and streets from gun violence; and for democracy, the rule of law and equal justice. The fight would continue, she said, in the voting booth, in the courts and in the public square, and in quieter ways in everyday life.
Harris looked back on the 107 days of her campaign and thanked her family, President Biden and Dr. Biden, her running mate Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and his family, her team, volunteers, poll workers and local election officials. To the young people watching, she said it was okay to feel sad and disappointed, but the important thing was never to give up: "Sometimes the fight takes a while. That doesn't mean we won't win."
She closed by quoting an adage a historian once called a law of history: only when it is dark enough can you see the stars. If America was entering a dark time, she said, "let us fill the sky with the light of a brilliant, brilliant billion of stars" -- the light of optimism, faith, truth and service. (Source: The White House)
Source: The White House
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：副总统哈里斯官方肖像（2021年3月4日，白宫官方摄影师 Lawrence Jackson 摄），公共领域，经 Wikimedia Commons。当日承认败选讲话的官方现场照片未获公开授权图源，故按本站口径以官方肖像配稿。 / Photo: Official portrait of Vice President Kamala Harris (March 4, 2021), by White House photographer Lawrence Jackson, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
