(NewsNation) – Democrat Kamala Harris appealed for unity in her concession speech at Howard University after her loss to Republican Donald Trump.
Foreign leaders and President Joe Biden congratulated Trump after the election results, with the former president’s victories in battleground states trampling Democrats.
“The outcome of this election is not what we wanted, it is not what we fought for, and it is not what we voted for,” Harris said in her first speech since the election. “But hear me, as long as we never give up, and as long as we keep fighting, the light of America’s promise will always burn bright.
Harris campaign manager Jen O’Malley Dillon sent a letter to staff Tuesday night, assuring staff at the time that the race was “exactly what we were preparing for.”
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O’Malley Dillon said in an email that his staff knew all along that this was a “very close race.”
“While we continue to see data trickle in from Sun Belt states, we have long known that the clearest path to 270 electoral votes is through the Blue Wall states,” O’Malley Dillon said. ” “And we’re happy with what we’re seeing.”
Harris called Trump on Wednesday to congratulate him on his victory. President Joe Biden also called Trump, according to the Associated Press.
At around 1:30 a.m. PT on Wednesday, President Trump told his supporters: “This was a move like no one had ever seen before.
“Frankly, I think this was the greatest political movement in history,” Trump said. “There has never been anything like this before, not just in this country, but probably in any other country. And now the importance of this country will reach a new level, because we will help this country recover.” Because I intend to.”
J.D. Vance, Trump’s running mate and current vice president-elect, also spoke, calling the former president’s victory the biggest political reversal in “the history of the United States.”
“He turned out to be a good choice,” Trump said of Vance.
Jeff Arnold of The Associated Press and NewsNation contributed to this report.
