Election 2020 updates: Biden warns of 'dark winter,' pushes masks in pandemic plan

At Vice President-elect Kamala Harris' alma mater, Howard University, in Washington, D.C., the mood among students and members of her sorority, Alpha Kappa Alpha, was ecstatic on Saturday. The jubilation on campus kicked off early Saturday afternoon and lasted throughout the evening as Harris and Joe Biden took the stage in Delaware.

Gwen Cofield, a fellow soror who was on campus at the same time Harris in the early 1980s, was among those impatiently watching the results on TV in the past few days.

"With the tension and the voting and accounting of it was stressful," Cofield told ABC News. "There was some sadness in terms of some levels of watching the numbers and what it meant for us as a a nation."

"Ultimately the final numbers showed what direction we want to go at," she added. "And so that is what makes me excited. The tears I ultimately shed will be tears of joy."

Howard University celebrated the news of their famous alum, saying in a statement, "Senator Kamala Harris has swung her Howard hammer and shattered the proverbial glass ceiling into pieces that will not be put back together. In an election that saw more Americans cast a ballot than ever before, a majority of Americans have selected Vice President Biden to be the 46th President and our distinguished alumna Senator Harris to serve as the 49th Vice President of the United States."

One student on campus, Taylor Ward, told ABC News that Harris' rise to vice president "is very empowering and eye-opening knowing that you could potentially do everything that you want to do just because you have an example set for you."

-ABC News' Matthew Vann, Becky Perlow and Faith Abubey

When Biden concluded his remarks, his family joined him on stage, followed by Harris and her relatives.

"In the last days of the campaign, I began thinking about a hymn that means a lot to me and my family, particularly my deceased son, Beau. It captures the faith that sustains me and which I believe sustains America. And I hope -- and I hope it can provide some comfort and solace to the ... Americans who have lost a loved one through this terrible virus this year," he said.

"'And he will raise you up on eagles' wings, bear you on the breath of dawn, and make you to shine like the sun and hold you in the palm of his hand,'" Biden said, quoting "On Eagles Wings." "And now together on eagles' wings, we embark on the work that God and history have called us to do with full hearts and steady hands, with faith in America and in each other, with love of country, a thirst for justice. Let us be the nation that we know we can be. A nation united, a nation strengthened, a nation healed."

Biden promised not to divide, but to unify.

"Folks, I’m a proud Democrat, but I will govern as an American president. I'll work as hard for those who didn't vote for me as those who did. Let this grim era of demonization in America begin to end here and now," he said to cheers, applause and car horn honks.

"The refusal of Democrats and Republicans to cooperate with one another, it’s not some mysterious force beyond our control. It's a decision. A choice we make. And if we can decide not to cooperate, then we can decide to cooperate. And I believe that this is part of the mandate given to us from the American people," he continued.

"America has always been shaped by inflection points, by moments in time where we've made hard decisions about who we are and what we want to be. Lincoln in 1860 coming to save the union. FDR in 1932 promising a beleaguered country a new deal. JFK in 1960 pledging a new frontier, and 12 years ago, when Barack Obama made history, he told us 'yes, we can,'" he added. "Well folks, we stand at an inflection point. We have an opportunity to defeat despair, to build a nation of prosperity and purpose. We can do it. I know we can."

Biden then returned to the message he used to kick off his campaign.

"I've long talked about the battle for the soul of America. We must restore the soul of America. Our nation is shaped by the constant battle between our better angels and our darkest impulses. And what presidents say in this battle matters. It's time for our better angels to prevail," he said. "Tonight, the whole world is watching America. And I believe at our best, America is a beacon for the globe."