“The president-elect thanked His Holiness for extending blessings and congratulations.”
Pope Francis called President-elect Joe Biden early Nov. 12 to congratulate him on winning the U.S. presidential election.
“The president-elect thanked His Holiness for extending blessings and congratulations and noted his appreciation for His Holiness’s leadership in promoting peace, reconciliation and the common bonds of humanity around the world,” said a readout on the call released by Biden’s transition team in Wlmington. It also was all over Twitter.
Biden, it said, “expressed his desire to work together on the basis of a shared belief in the dignity and equality of all humankind on issues such as caring for the marginalized and the poor, addressing the crisis of climate change, and welcoming and integrating immigrants and refugees into our communities.”
Biden will be the nation’s second Catholic president, after John F. Kennedy, who was elected to the nation’s highest office 60 years ago, on Nov. 8, 1960.
On Nov. 7, the media declared Biden the winner of the Nov. 3 election, but President Donald Trump has not conceded, and he and his campaign have filed several lawsuits in key battleground states, like Pennsylvania, disputing the election outcome, claiming voter fraud and irregularities in ballot counting.
While votes are still being counted, Biden has garnered 290 electoral votes while Trump has 217 electoral votes. It takes 270 votes to win the presidency.
UPDATE: Confirmation of the phone call from the Vatican. Via Vatican News:
The Director of the Holy See Press Office, Matteo Bruni, has confirmed that Pope Francis and Joe Biden spoke by phone on Thursday.
The conversation followed greetings from the American Bishops, which came in a message from the president of the USCCB, Archbishop José Gomez of Los Angeles, who congratulated Biden as the second Catholic president, after John F. Kennedy.
