November 7, 2020 marked a momentous day in the United States as Americans learned that after four years of the polarising Donald Trump, they were getting a new President.
There were celebrations and protests nationwide as Joe Biden was officially declared the winner of an election that had dragged on for several days, amid tight battles in swing states and late-arriving postal ballots.
But as Americans reacted to Biden overcoming Trump, another historic subplot was taking shape: the election of Kamala Harris as Biden's Vice President.
Harris' new position is hugely significant for many reasons. When she's inaugurated, she will become the first woman to occupy the role, as well as the first Black American and first South Asian-American.
It's not the first time Harris has broken through the proverbial glass ceiling. She became California's first Black female Attorney-General in 2011 and was also just the second Black woman to be elected to the US Senate in 2017.
But now she's on the cusp of America's second-most senior position - making her one of the most powerful people on the planet.
The Guardian reports that women in attendance at Biden's victory ceremony were brought to tears in their droves on Saturday as they watched Harris' speech, in which she paid tribute to the women who came before her and wore all white in honour of the suffragette movement.
"I reflect on their struggle, their determination and the strength of their vision, to see what can be, unburdened by what has been," she told the crowd in Wilmington, Delaware. "I stand on their shoulders."
They weren't the only ones who were emotional. Donna Brazile, a woman of colour who is the former chair of the Democratic National Convention (DNC), broke down live on Fox News as she was asked how she felt about the result.
"It's been a long time coming," she eventually said after composing herself. "To be the last to get voting rights, to be those who just waited and waited for our turn, it's been a long time coming."
"I thought about my mom and my grandmother this morning - they didn't have the right to vote, but I did. I spent all my life believing that the right to vote was key to our future.
"And because of the American people ... those who did not see colour, gender, those who believed it was about competence and just giving everyone a seat at the table ... I'm so grateful that this moment has come."
Democratic politician Buffy Wicks also said she was also moved to tears as her daughter watched Harris spoke directly to young girls who aspired to the heights she'd achieved.
"Tears streaming down my face right now watching Vice President-elect Kamala Harris speech with my daughter," she wrote. "Kamala said "to all the little girls out there…" and Jojo said "she's taking to me!" I can't express how emotional this makes me."
In a written statement posted to Twitter, former President Barack Obama - himself the first Black President of the US - said he "couldn't be prouder" of Harris, whose appointment he described as "groundbreaking".
Wife Michelle Obama said Harris and Biden would "restore some dignity, competence and heart at the White House".
Meanwhile author Roxane Gay said she "did not think I would be this moved to see a black woman/south Asian woman/woman as Vice President".
"But I am. It's so wonderful. My nieces know so much more is possible now."
Hollywood stars got in the act too. Legally Blonde actress Reese Witherspoon celebrated Harris' appointment as "monumental" and celebrated the women who paved the way, while The Office's Mindy Kaling said she was moved to tears as she told her daughter "look baby, she looks like us".
