Joe Biden secures Democratic presidential nomination

Joe Biden has officially clinched the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination, setting him up to meet Donald Trump for the leadership of a country beset by the coronavirus pandemic and civil unrest.

Mr Biden said in a statement: “It was an honour to compete alongside one of the most talented groups of candidates the Democratic party has ever fielded, and I am proud to say that we are going into this general election a united party.” The former vice president has been his party’s presumptive nominee since rival Bernie Sanders ended his campaign in April.

But he needed to secure a sufficient number of delegates from elections this week in seven states and the District of Columbia, with a surge in mail ballots making his position official late on Friday.