Democrat Joe Biden was declared the winner of the presidential race Saturday, defeating Republican Donald Trump, the first sitting president to fail to win reelection in a quarter of a century.
The Associated Press declared Biden and vice presidential candidate Kamala Harris the winners after calling the race in Pennsylvania, which put the Democratic ticket over the 270 electoral vote count necessary to win.
Horns honked in Burlington and in cities across the nation when the news organization called the race shortly before noon.
Republican Gov. Phil Scott congratulated the Democrat and said he is counting on the president-elect “to deliver the principled, unifying leadership he committed to on the campaign trail.”
Congressman Peter Welch, D-Vt., said, “I don’t think any of us realized what a burden we were carrying with Donald Trump’s anger and division.”
The states of New Mexico, Arizona and Georgia announced Saturday that Biden had more votes than Trump.
On Election Day, Biden appeared to be in a dead heat with Trump, at times trailing the president in both the Electoral College tally and the overall popular vote. But over the past several days, he gained ground as mail-in ballots were counted in key battleground states, including Wisconsin and Michigan.
As of Friday night, a winner had not been declared in Nevada, Arizona, Georgia, Pennsylvania or North Carolina.
But by Saturday, Biden had won two of those states — Pennsylvania and Nevada — according to The New York Times. He is the first candidate to beat an incumbent since Bill Clinton beat George H. W. Bush in 1992.
The 77-year-old Delaware senator and former vice president for President Barack Obama has been a fixture in Washington, D.C., since 1973. His running mate, Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., is the first woman of color to win the vice presidency. The former California attorney general, 56, is the daughter of Indian and Jamaican immigrants.
In a statement, Biden said, “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.”
Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., said the election of Biden and Harris is “an historic and hugely meaningful moment for our good and great nation. We’re so proud of our friends and look forward to working together to make ours a more perfect Union.”
In an interview, Leahy said the Trump administration “has been polarizing, racist and selective on what religion they said they would accept — from a man who never goes to church except for a photo op.”
While previous presidents kept their word in negotiations, Trump would agree to one thing and tweet another, further polarizing politics in D.C., Leahy said. “We’ve got to get back to those days where we work together,” he continued. “The country would have been irreparably damaged under Donald Trump because of the polarization.”
Leahy and Biden were junior senators together in the Watergate era and have been longtime friends.
In a statement, Sen. Bernie Sanders, who Biden defeated to win the Democratic nomination, said on Twitter: “I want to congratulate all those who worked so hard to make this historic day possible. Now, through our continued grassroots organizing, let us create a government that works for ALL and not the few. Let us create a nation built on justice, not greed and bigotry.”
Sanders campaigned for Biden in the waning days of the general election.
Welch said he was elated by the news.
“All of us were putting one foot in front of the other trying to do the best we could, hanging in there. Suddenly, that’s gone,” Welch said in an interview. “Everything about Joe Biden has been about finding common ground. So it’s huge relief.
“The challenge he faces is one that calls for unity,” Welch said. “Everyone is faced with Covid. And everyone has been economically hammered by Covid. His mission is clear: Deal with the virus and the economy in a way that helps people across the country.”
Welch said he found it reassuring that in Vermont the two most popular vote-getters were Biden and Republican Gov. Phil Scott. “Vermonters want unity. They want Vermonters to work together and that is the Vermont way and that’s what we need in Washington. Biden has lived that. He’s close to the people he represented. He took the train home every night to Delaware. That’s the core foundation of making progress rather than stoking division.”
Scott, who voted for Biden, said he hoped Biden’s election would restore civility. In a statement, the Republican governor noted the historic election of Harris, the first woman and first person of color selected to serve as vice president.
“It is my greatest hope they will be successful in uniting our country and leading us forward through these difficult times,” Scott said in a statement.
“And regardless of who we voted for, each of us must do all we can to heal our nation. We simply cannot go on with the level of division and polarization we’re seeing. It is preventing us from addressing our greatest challenges and strengthening adversaries who want to dim the bright light of liberty and economic opportunity that America represents in the world,” Scott said.
He also implored Trump to respect the will of the voters and to respect the integrity of the voting process.
“For over 200 years our electoral process has stood as the example to the free world, providing hope for people and places where free elections are not guaranteed. We cannot let our system fall victim to those who fail to live up to its values. I want to be clear about this: Both Republican and Democrat election officials in every state in the country stand by the integrity of this process. Only legal votes are being counted,” Scott said.
“The voters have spoken. It is now up to each of us to rise above the anger and divisiveness and to turn our focus to our common humanity and love of family, freedom and country. This is what real leadership would call on us to do – win or lose,” Scott said.
He added: “This is our moment in time to reclaim our moral compass, move the United States forward and live up to our greatest ideals: Equal rights, equal justice and equal opportunity for every American.”
Crowds gathered outside Burlington City Hall on Saturday afternoon to celebrate Biden’s win.
In Montpelier, dozens of Trump supporters gathered on the Statehouse steps to protest the result. Chanting “stop the steal,” speakers took turns with a megaphone to claim that millions of Trump votes were not being counted, while they encouraged listeners to read “the truth” about the election on QAnon websites.
Counterdemonstrators gathered on the lawn, shouting at the Trump flag-wavers to “go home.” Some held Biden-Harris or “protect the vote” signs.
Debra Stoleroff of Plainfield, who came to respond to the Trump gathering, said she worried about what the president might attempt next. “The fight is just beginning, as far as I can tell,” she said. “Trump’s going to do all he can to say that it’s a stolen election.”
Capitol Police said they had not issued a permit or received advance notice for the gathering, though they had expected to see activity on the grounds on Saturday.
