U.S. Democrats formally nominate Biden for president

The ongoing U.S. Democratic National Convention on Tuesday voted to officially nominate Joe Biden as the party's presidential candidate.

Biden, already the presumptive nominee since April when all other contenders in the once crowded Democratic field dropped their bids, briefly addressed supporters from his hometown of Wilmington, Delaware, after a virtual presidential roll call.

"From the bottom of my heart, thank you all. This means the world to me and my family. And I'll see you on Thursday," he said, referring to his upcoming acceptance speech to wrap up the four-day convention.

The Democratic nomination entitled the 77-year-old former vice president to take on incumbent President Donald Trump of the Republican Party in the upcoming election scheduled for Nov. 3.

Unlike prior conventions where delegates would gather in an arena and the delegations from each state would be called upon to announce how many delegates pledge for each candidate, this year the presidential roll call happened virtually due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Joe Biden, former U.S. vice president, attends a caucus night rally with his wife Jill Biden at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, the United States, Feb. 3, 2020. (Photo by Joel Lerner/Xinhua)