'Today, America's Democracy Stood'

"Democracy must be upheld by the people," Vice President Kamala Harris told NBC News before she oversaw the certification of President-elect Trump's election victory—and her election defeat. "Today I did what I have done my entire career, which is take seriously the oath that I have taken many times to support and defend the Constitution of the United States," she said after the Electoral College vote count was certified in a brief and uneventful joint session of Congress. "I do believe very strongly that America's democracy is only as strong as our willingness to fight for it. Today, America's democracy stood," she said, per CNN.

"Today was obviously a very important day and it was about what should be the norm and what the American people should be able to take for granted, which is that one of the most important pillars of our democracy is that there will be a peaceful transfer of power, " Harris said. The process ended in under 30 minutes because no lawmakers challenged the results from any state, the Guardian reports. The length of the joint session was similar to that of recent years except 2021's, when it was interrupted by Trump supporters storming the Capitol. It then took 14 hours, 48 minutes to certify President Biden's win. (More Election 2024 stories.)