Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

‘Time to heal’: Pelosi congratulates Biden ‘on victory’ and Harris for ‘making history’

'It’s a time to heal and a time to grow together,' the House speaker said 

Sam Hancock
Saturday 07 November 2020 18:39 GMT
Comments
Joe Biden wins election - live results: 46th president declared after tight race against Trump to White House
Leer en Español

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Nancy Pelosi congratulated Joe Biden “on his victory” and Kamala Harris “for making history”, after news broke that Mr Biden had beaten Donald Trump to be named president of the US. 

Ms Pelosi, speaker of the House of Representatives, celebrated by saying: “We kept the republic!” before adding: “It’s a time to heal and a time to grow together.”

Mr Biden was declared the winner of the 2020 election at around 11.30am EST (4.30pm GMT) after securing Pennsylvania, taking him well over the required 270 electoral votes.  

Speaker Pelosi, a longtime friend and supporter of Mr Biden, is an outspoken critic of Mr Trump and the two have clashed many times. The Democrat spearheaded Mr Trump’s impeachment process. 

Ms Pelosi was the first senior government official to refer to Mr Biden as the “president-elect” at a press conference on Friday. 

Elsewhere on social media, former president Barack Obama, Mr Trump’s 2016 opponent Hillary Clinton, and a slew of celebrities were congratulating the president-elect on his defeat of Mr Trump. 

Mr Obama called the win “historic” and “decisive” in a statement, while Ms Clinton defiantly said: “It's a history-making ticket, a repudiation of Trump, and a new page for America.”

Mr Biden will be sworn in as the 46th US president on 20 January, while Senator Harris will make history as the first-ever female vice president. 

Follow live for further updates: Joe Biden wins the 2020 US election

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in