THE AFRICAN COURIER. Reporting Africa and its Diaspora! The African Courier is an international magazine published in Germany to report on Africa and the Diaspora African experience. The first issue of the bimonthly magazine appeared on the newsstands on 15 February 1998. The African Courier is a communication forum for European-African political, economic and cultural exchanges, and a voice for Africa in Europe.
Joseph Robinette Biden of the Democratic Party on Saturday said he is “honored and humbled“ by the trust the American people had placed in him and Vice-President elect, Kamala Harris.
Biden has won Tuesday’s presidential election to become the 46th elected President of the United States.
In a statement, Biden said he was “honoured and humbled“ by the trust the American people had placed in him and in Vice President-elect Kamala Harris.
“In the face of unprecedented obstacles, a record number of Americans voted. Proving once again, that democracy beats deep in the heart of America.
“With the campaign over, it’s time to put the anger and the harsh rhetoric behind us and come together as a nation.
”It’s time for America to unite. And to heal. We are the United States of America. And there’s nothing we can’t do, if we do it together”, he said.
Biden, 77, defeated the Republican incumbent, Donald Trump, by securing 273 electoral college votes against Trump’s 214, after four days of tensed vote count that kept not only America but also the whole world on the edge.
The Electoral College refers to the group of presidential electors required by the constitution to form every four years for the sole purpose of electing the President and Vice President.
Article II section 1, clause 2 provides that each state shall appoint electors selected in a manner determined by its legislature.
There are currently 538 electors in the Electoral College, and an absolute majority of electoral votes—270 or more—is required for the college to elect the president and vice president.
If no candidate achieves an absolute majority, a contingent election is held whereby the U.S. Congress is required to elect the president and vice president.
The former Vice President, who turns 78 on Nov. 20, will become the oldest president in U.S. history, after Ronald Reagan, the 40th president, who left office in 1989 at 77.
History has also been made in Biden’s running mate, Kamala Harris, who is now the first female vice president in America’s history.
The senator from California has also emerged as the first woman of colour to be elected to the White House.
By this result, Trump has become the first one-term US president since the 1990s.
Abeeb Alawiye
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