Barack Obama finally endorses Kamala Harris

• Barack Obama formally endorsed Kamala Harris in a post early Friday.
• He held off endorsing Harris for a time, while many other leading Democrats went ahead.
• But he'd reportedly supported her in private and been in close contact with her this week.

Barack Obama has announced that he's endorsing Kamala Harris as the 2024 Democratic nominee.

The former president announced his support of Harris in a video released early on Friday.

It was a joint endorsement with his wife, Michelle.

It showed a phone conversation between Harris and both Obamas, which the announcement said was recorded earlier in the week.

In it, Michelle Obama said: "To my girl Kamala, I am proud of you. This is going to be historic."

Following this, Barack Obama said: "Michelle and I couldn't be prouder to endorse you and do everything we can to get you through this election and into the Oval Office."

Harris responded: "I am looking forward to doing this with the two of you."

After President Joe Biden bowed out of the race on Sunday and endorsed Harris to replace him, many Democrats were quick to voice their support of Harris for president. But Obama notably was not one of them.

Obama did release a statement on Sunday praising Biden's service to the country and his decision to drop out of the race, but it didn't mention Harris.

NBC News reports Obama has privately supported Harris and been in contact with her this week. He waited to publicly back her because he didn't want to overshadow Biden before Wednesday night's Oval Office address, according to NBC.

One person familiar with the matter told the outlet that Obama thinks Harris has "been off to a great start" with her campaign.

Obama had privately voiced his skepticism about Biden's reelection chances, telling his allies that Biden should seriously reconsider the future of his campaign.

If elected in November, Harris would become the second Black president in US history, after Obama, as well as the first female president and first president of South Asian descent.