Democrats formally pick Joe Biden as presidential candidate

The Democrats in the United States on Tuesday formally nominated former vice-president Joe Biden as their presidential candidate.

The nomination, carried out in a virtual roll call at the Democratic National Convention, cements Biden bid as the party’s standard bearer in the November election.

Biden won the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination in June after securing more than 1,990 delegates.

He had subsequently announced Kamala Harris, a senator from California, as his running mate.

Biden said his nomination “means the world to me and my family”, adding that he would deliver a formal acceptance speech on Thursday at the conclusion of the four-day convention.

“Well, thank you very, very much, from the bottom of my heart. It means the world to me and my family,” Biden said in a live video.

The convention included presentations by democrats, including Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton, former presidents.

Describing the White House as a place of chaos, Clinton accused President Donald Trump of irresponsibility, while asking Americans to oust him by voting Biden.

“At a time like this, the Oval Office should be a command center. Instead, it’s a storm center. There’s only chaos,” Clinton said.

“Just one thing never changes — his determination to deny responsibility and shift the blame. The buck never stops there.”

Jill, Biden’s wife, describing how the death of Biden’s first wife and daughter in a car crash in 1972 has shaped her husband, assured the populace that her husband would make America whole.

“How do you make a broken family whole? The same way you make a nation whole. With love and understanding — and with small acts of compassion. With bravery. With unwavering faith,” Jill said.

Republicans will hold their convention next week to officially endorse President Donald Trump’s reelection bid.