Delegates to begin voting as Harris prepares to accept Democratic nomination

Nearly 4,000 Democrats are set to begin voting Thursday morning as the party chooses its nominee for the upcoming presidential election.

Party leaders said that Vice President Kamala Harris is the only candidate on the ballot as 99% of delegates petitioned to put her on. Given the support she has received from both party leaders and rank-and-file Democrats, her nomination is a near certainty.

Democratic National Committee Chair Jamie Harrison and Democratic National Convention Committee Chair Minyon Moore called her the "presumptive nominee" after an overwhelming majority of delegates petitioned to get her on the ballot.

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“Democratic delegates from across the nation made their voices heard, overwhelmingly backing Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic Party’s presumptive nominee," they said. "As we prepare to open the voting on our virtual roll call, we move to this final stage of our nomination process with unprecedented momentum and unity across our party. We stand united in our mission to elect a Democratic nominee who has the experience, the wisdom, and the bold determination to lead our country, and we stand united in our mission to defeat Donald Trump once again."

Voting begins Thursday at 9 a.m. and will continue into Monday.

How this nomination process is different

There are two major differences in this year's nomination compared to prior years.

One difference is that generally nominations are held in person at the party convention, but this year, Democrats are voting virtually. This year's Democratic convention comes within 90 days of the election, which is after when Ohio law closes ballot access.

Although the state passed a measure to give Democrats more time to file their petition for the ballot, the party opted not to take any chances and wanted to have the nomination process done by the previous Aug. 7 deadline in Ohio.

Secondly, nearly all of the delegates for this year's convention are not bound to a candidate. President Joe Biden, who won an overwhelming majority of delegates during the primaries held earlier this year, dropped out of the race last month over concerns about his age. Delegates are obligated to vote for the candidate they're bound for in the first round of balloting, but with President Biden dropping out, delegates are free to vote for any candidate.

Only Harris opted to go for the party's nomination, and other Democrats with rumored presidential aspirations have instead put their hopes into being Harris' running mate.

Harris is expected to name her running mate by Tuesday at the latest when she begins a multi-state tour with her currently unnamed vice presidential pick.