US Vice-President Kamala Harris has secured the Democratic presidential nomination in a vote of party delegates, marking a historic moment in American politics. The virtual roll call continues ahead of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago later this month, where Harris will officially accept the nomination.

Harris, who is the first black woman and the first South Asian woman to become the White House standard-bearer for a major US political party, expressed her honor at being the presumptive nominee during a telephone conversation. If she triumphs over Republican nominee Donald Trump in November, Harris would also become the first female president in the United States.

President Joe Biden, who previously dropped out of the race, swiftly endorsed Harris, paving the way for her unopposed victory in the virtual roll call. Subsequently, several potential rivals followed Biden's lead and threw their support behind Harris.

With the support of 2,350 delegates, Harris formally became the nominee on Friday afternoon, surpassing the threshold required to earn the nomination. Speaking by phone, Harris emphasized the campaign's commitment to the promise of America, acknowledging that the road ahead will not be easy but expressing determination to get the job done.

An overwhelming majority of participants, 99% or 3,923 delegates, plan to vote for Harris in the DNC. However, the relatively late date of the convention has raised concerns about compliance with state ballot access laws. The 2024 DNC, scheduled from August 19th to 22nd, risks falling afoul of these laws, which prompted the decision to hold a virtual nominating process.

Harris, 59, has an impressive political career, rising through the ranks from San Francisco district attorney to California attorney general and eventually becoming a US senator. Her nomination as the Democratic candidate also marks a significant milestone as she is the first nominee in the party's nearly 200-year history to hail from a western state.

Biden's decision to step aside came after mounting pressure within the party following a lackluster debate performance against Trump in June. The virtual nominating process was also necessitated by Ohio's rules for ballot access, which require candidates to be formally selected 90 days before the election. Republicans in the state had threatened to enforce the law, leading Democrats to conduct an earlier roll call to avoid the risk of their candidates being excluded from the ballot.

While delegates do not need to vote on the vice-presidential pick, Harris is expected to announce her running mate by Monday. The substitution of Biden with Harris has drawn criticism from the Trump campaign and some Republicans, with claims that she secured the nomination without holding a press conference or a sit-down interview, leading to some labeling it as a "coup".

However, since Biden's endorsement, Harris has been actively campaigning against Trump, holding multiple rallies and fundraisers across battleground states. The campaign has reported a significant fundraising success, raising over $310 million in the month of July. This figure surpasses the $138 million raised by the Trump campaign last month and represents the highest fundraising total of the 2024 election cycle thus far.