Kamala Harris faces her toughest job yet: certifying Trump’s victory

Dressed in a plum-colored power suit, Kamala Harris stood cool as a cucumber at the front of the joint session of Congress this afternoon, ready to certify the next president of the United States, Donald John Trump. She upheld her vice presidential duties with grace and composure, often politely smiling. For Harris, this wasn’t just a ceremonial duty; it was the political equivalent of attending a family reunion where your least favorite uncle decides to run for president and wins.

Certifying the president’s election is a mostly unremarkable event. The vice president, in the role of the Senate’s presiding officer, counts the electoral votes and calls it a day. What sets this certification apart is the fact that Kamala Harris is not only certifying the vote for President-elect Trump, but she is putting to rest her own historic presidential campaign, admitting her final defeat.

There’s no hiding it: Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are not exactly besties. They are polar opposites on nearly every political issue, and their style of campaigning was undoubtedly different. There was very little love lost between the two candidates as the campaign was fraught with drama and fireworks. But, as vice president, Harris didn’t have any choice but to act as a dutiful servant of the Constitution, whether she liked it or not. It was her job to confirm the results, regardless of how much she might have been cringing on the inside while doing it.

It’s a delicate balancing act. Harris appeared impartial, cool-headed, and constitutional, performing her vice presidential duties. She smiled through the raucous applause when Donald Trump was certified as the next president of the United States and she smiled gratefully as the Democrats gave her a standing ovation.  

Not alone in this bizarre situation, Harris stands in good company. The New York Times reported that, “[This] was the first time in a century that a presidential candidate had finalized the results of an election [they] lost.” With modern-day candidates Richard Nixon in 1960, Al Gore in 2000, Walter Mondale in 1981, Dan Quayle in 1993 and, of course, Mike Pence in 2021, Kamala Harris was standing in the exact same spot in front of the joint session – literally and figuratively.   

No matter what Harris felt in the pit of her stomach, she was expected to keep it together, smile politely, and carry out her duty, which she did successfully and with grace.

At the end of the day, Kamala Harris’s role in certifying the Trump presidency may not just be a test of constitutional duty: it was the ultimate demonstration of political grace under fire–a master class in how to smile through the awkwardness. Either way, it’s going to be something we all talk about for years to come.