Joe Biden’s election win is good news for democracy, for the US, and for the world

Editorial: Now the hard work really begins. America needs to unite after the divisiveness and hostility of the past four years

America needs the divisiveness and hostility of the past four years to be scaled back, for which the president-elect has already struck the right tone (AP)

It was no longer dawn, not even in California, when the news came. But it marked a new day in the United States and a fresh start for the world. The long wait for the vote counters in Pennsylvania to put the election beyond doubt allowed us to adjust gradually to the momentous change, as if our eyes had to get used to the light before we could see clearly. 

What we see is a more hopeful future. President-elect Joe Biden is a conventional politician. Usually faint praise, that is today a high compliment. As president, he will respect America’s alliances and its international obligations. He will re-engage with the global effort to deal with the climate emergency. We hope he will bring the US and the world together more, after four years of divisive shouting. 

We welcome the election of Kamala Harris as vice president, the first woman and the first woman of colour to hold such high office. For so many Americans, and for so many people around the world, who felt that the current president had encouraged racism, her elevation will be like a liberation.