Harris Has Votes Needed to Be Democrats’ Nominee, D.N.C. Says

Vice President Kamala Harris has won enough delegates to secure the Democratic Party’s nomination, the Democratic National Committee said on Friday, setting up Ms. Harris to become the first Black woman and person of South Asian heritage to earn the top spot on a major political ticket for president.

Jaime Harrison, the party chair, said Ms. Harris’s nomination would become official after the party’s highly unusual, virtual roll call vote ends on Monday. He made the announcement during an online meeting for supporters while delegates were still voting in a virtual process devised to formally name the Democratic nominee before the party’s convention this month.

After Mr. Harrison spoke, Ms. Harris phoned into the meeting, saying that she was “honored to be the presumptive Democratic nominee” and that she looked forward to the convention, which begins in Chicago on Aug. 19.

“Later this month, we will gather in Chicago, united as one party, where we’re going to have an opportunity to celebrate this historic moment together,” Ms. Harris said.

The announcement caps five weeks of chaos for Democrats, who had embarked on a pressure campaign — both in public and behind closed doors — to persuade President Biden to drop his re-election bid after his abysmal debate performance against former President Donald J. Trump in June.

Although her place atop the ticket had essentially been a foregone conclusion once Mr. Biden endorsed her after dropping out last month, Ms. Harris has brought her party together remarkably quickly, raising more than $200 million, drawing thousands of people to her rallies and energizing her party’s base.