Biden to be formally nominated via virtual vote despite withdrawal calls

The Democratic National Committee has announced that the party plans to formally nominate Joe Biden as their presidential candidate at the beginning of August. The nomination is set to take place during a virtual vote, which was announced on Saturday. Despite calls for him to withdraw from the presidential race, Biden does not plan to give up.

The DNC Convention Rules Committee decided the day before that the voting would occur between 1 and 7 August.

Typically, parties nominate candidates during national conventions. The Democrats intend to hold their convention on 19 August in Chicago. However, party leaders have determined that the virtual vote must be conducted no later than 7 August. This step aims to avoid potential legal disputes in Ohio, which requires major parties to have their presidential candidate 90 days before the general election on 5 November.

Dana Remus, a former White House advisor, stated: "My goal as counsel is to ensure we address and avoid all unnecessary legal risk on the way. And that's why we need a virtual nominating process," she added.

3,896 delegates sworn in for the national convention will participate in the vote. If the presidential candidate does not receive an absolute majority, 700 so-called "superdelegates" will also participate in the second round. These include legislators from the US House of Representatives and Senate, governors, state party leaders, and DNC members.

Biden gained the support of 99 per cent of the delegates in the Democratic primaries. Nevertheless, over 35 members of Congress have called on him to withdraw from the candidacy. However, Biden is ignoring these calls. After a break caused by quarantine due to a COVID-19 infection, he plans to resume his election campaign next week.