Vice President Kamala Harris publicly conceded the 2024 elections to President-elect Donald Trump during a hopeful news conference at his alma mater Howard University on Wednesday.

“My heart is full today, full of gratitude for the trust you have placed in me, full of love for our country and full of determination. The outcome of this election is not what we wanted, what we fought for, what we voted for,” she said from Washington, DC. “But listen to me when I say that the light of America’s promise will always shine as long as we never give up and as long as we keep fighting.

“I know people are feeling and experiencing a range of emotions right now. I understand, but we must accept the results of this election. Earlier today, I spoke with President-elect Trump and congratulated him on his victory. I also told him that we would help him and his team with their transition and engage in a peaceful transfer of power,” Harris continued. “A fundamental principle of American democracy is that when we lose an election, we accept the results. This principle, like any other, distinguishes democracy from monarchy or tyranny, and anyone who seeks to gain public trust must honor it.

“At the same time, in our nation, we owe loyalty not to a nation or a party, but to the Constitution,” she added the day after the 2024 election. “Even if I conceded the election, I do not admit the fight that fueled this campaign.

“The fight for freedom, for opportunity, for fairness and dignity for all, a fight for the ideals that are at the heart of our nation, the ideals that reflect the best of America: it is a fight that I will never give up,” Harris said. “I will never give up the fight for a future where Americans can pursue their dreams, ambitions and aspirations, where American women have the freedom to make decisions about their own bodies, and where their government does not tell them what to do We will never give up the fight to protect our schools and streets from gun violence.

“There is a saying: only when it is dark enough can you see the stars. I know many people feel like we are entering a dark time, but for all of our sakes, I hope that is not the case. But here’s the thing, America: If that’s the case, let’s fill the sky with the light of a billion bright stars,” she concluded. “The light of optimism, faith, truth and service. May this work guide us, even in the face of setbacks, toward the extraordinary promise of the United States of America.

Earlier Wednesday, Harris/Walz campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon celebrated its launch of a “historic, first-rate presidential campaign in 90 days.” She also thanked her staff for overcoming “unprecedented headwinds and obstacles that were largely beyond our control.” We knew it would be a race for the margin of error, and it was.

While describing Harris’ loss as “unfathomably painful” and “tough,” O’Malley Dillon reiterated that “the work to protect America from the impacts of a Trump presidency begins now.”

Although not all states have been officially called, Trump currently holds 292 electoral votes to Harris’ 224. You need 270 to win.

Before Harris took the stage Wednesday, a doctor was called to the DJ booth from the speakers for an undisclosed reason. The press conference was scheduled to start at 4:00 p.m. EST, but it started closer to 4:25 p.m. EST.

The audience booed only once, when Harris first mentioned her concession, and notably applauded when her running mate, Gov. Tim Walz, entered the crowd just before Harris began speaking. She once again went to Beyoncé’s “Freedom.”