Biden and Harris to achieve a number of firsts in office. Here are some of them
The Biden-Harris administration will mark a number of firsts for the United States.
The Associated Press declared now President-elect Joe Biden the winner of the presidential election on Saturday after he claimed a key victory in Pennsylvania — picking up enough Electoral College votes to put him over the 270 threshold needed to win.
He and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris gave victory speeches that night in Wilmington, Delaware, promising to unite the nation.
The two will be sworn into office on Jan. 20, 2021, and will make history in a number of ways.
Harris achieves a number of firsts
Harris will be the first woman, the first Black person and the first South Asian-American person to hold the office, CNN reports.
Harris — born to a Jamaican father and Indian mother who met at the University of California at Berkeley — is also the first daughter of immigrants to be elected vice president, The New York Times reports.
Her ascension to vice president-elect follows an already-groundbreaking political career.
She was elected to the Senate in 2016, becoming only the second Black woman to serve in the chamber. She is also the first Black woman to serve as California’s attorney general, per the Times.
When Biden chose her as his running mate in August, she became the first Black woman to appear on a major party’s presidential ticket.
During her Saturday speech, she paid tribute to Black women, whom she called the “backbone of our democracy.”
“Tonight I reflect on their struggle, their determination and the strength of their vision to see what can be unburdened by what has been,” Harris said, according to the AP.
Biden to be oldest president and first from Delaware
Biden will be 78 when he’s sworn in, making him the oldest person to take office.
Previously, President Donald Trump was the oldest to be sworn in, at age 70, NPR reports.
Biden is also the first president-elect from Delaware, CBS News reports. Saturday marked exactly 48 years since he won his Senate seat at age 29 in Delaware, which he held for 36 years.
His family moved to Delaware from Scranton, Pennsylvania, when he was 10.
First time a first lady will work outside White House
Dr. Jill Biden, the president-elect’s wife, plans to keep her teaching job when she moves into the White House, which would make her the only first lady to keep a paid job while living there, USA Today reports
She’s a full-time English professor at Northern Virginia Community College, where she continued teaching during her eight years as second lady, per USA Today.
In August, she told CBS Sunday Morning she would “love to” keep teaching if she become first lady.
“If we get to the White House, I’m gonna continue to teach,” she said. “It’s important, and I want people to value teachers and know their contributions, and lift up the profession.”
During his victory speech Saturday, President-elect Biden said teaching is “who she is.”
“For America’s educators, this is a great day: You’re going to have one of your own in the White House, and Jill is going to make a great first lady,” Biden said.
The country’s first second gentleman
Doug Emhoff, Harris’ husband, will be the first male spouse of a vice president.
Emhoff, an entertainment lawyer, tweeted a photo of him and Harris hugging after she and Biden were named the projected winners of the election.
“So proud of you,” he wrote.
Biden in August mentioned that Emhoff would make history.
“Doug, you’re going to have to learn what it means to be a barrier-breaker yourself in this job you’re about to take on,” Biden said during a speech, according to NBC News.
First rescue dog adopted from shelter
Major, one of the Bidens’ dogs, will also make history in January.
The German shepherd will be the first rescue dog adopted from a shelter to live in the White House, NBC News reports. The Bidens adopted him in 2018 from the Delaware Humane Association after fostering him.
President Lyndon Johnson’s dog, Yuki, was also a rescue but wasn’t adopted from a shelter. Luci Nugent, Johnson’s daughter, found Yuki at a Texas gas station, according to the LBJ Presidential Library.
Champ, the Bidens’ other German shepherd, will also move into the White House with them. Champ was adopted in 2008 while Biden was serving as vice president.
Two dogs will move into the White House with the Bidens. Meet Major and Champ
This story was originally published November 8, 2020 at 11:32 AM with the headline "Biden and Harris to achieve a number of firsts in office. Here are some of them."
