Microsoft president Brad Smith has published one of the first official statements from the tech world congratulating president-elect Joe Biden and vice president-elect Kamala Harris on their election victory.
Smith opened with a reminder that Microsoft also congratulated the then president-elect Donald Trump in 2016. The company’s message then seems even more relevant today because Trump has yet to acknowledge the election result, which was called by major news organizations over the weekend.
“The peaceful transition of power has been an enduring and vital part of our democracy for over two centuries, and it remains so today,” Smith said in 2016.
“If we are to move forward as a nation, we must build new bridges to close the gaps that divide us,” Smith said today.
Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates also congratulated Biden and Harris, saying he looked forward to working with the new administration to help the country respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and fight against climate change.
“I look forward to working with the new administration and leaders on both sides in Congress on getting the surging pandemic under control, engaging partners around the world on issues like poverty and climate change, and addressing issues of inequality and opportunity at home,” said Gates in a tweet.
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, who was the focus of Trump’s ire during his presidency, congratulated Biden and Harris with an optimistic message about America’s future.
“Unity, empathy, and decency are not characteristics of a bygone era. Congratulations President-elect @JoeBiden and Vice President-elect @KamalaHarris. By voting in record numbers, the American people proved again that our democracy is strong,” Bezos said in an Instagram post.
The Business Roundtable – which includes the CEOs of the largest US tech corporations including Apple, Amazon, Cisco, Microsoft and Salesforce – offered its congratulations to Biden and Harris, and warned that Trump’s allegations of voting fraud are unlikely to change the result.
“While we respect the Trump campaign’s right to seek recounts, to call for investigation of alleged voting irregularities where evidence exists and to exhaust legitimate legal remedies, there is no indication that any of these would change the outcome,” the organization said in a statement.
“Business Roundtable applauds the historic number of Americans who participated in this election. We thank the election officials, judges and volunteers who worked tirelessly in the midst of a pandemic to ensure that the election was conducted with integrity. We believe that all Americans can have utmost confidence that the outcome reflects the will of the American people.”
Microsoft’s Smith called for bipartisan collaboration and encouraged the US to “build new bridges” with the rest of the world.
“We live in a decade that has started with a virus that respects no border and carbon that moves in the atmosphere not just from country to country, but from continent to continent. More and more of the issues of our day require stronger collaboration between the US and the rest of the world,” wrote Smith.
The New York Times reported that Biden will, after being sworn in on January 20, send a letter to the United Nations outlining US plan to reverse Trump’s decision to exit the Paris climate accord.
