WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden I dropped out of Races in 2024 President Donald Trump on Sunday ended his reelection bid and announced he was taking office in the White House after a disastrous debate with Republican leader Donald Trump in which he questioned the incumbent’s fitness to run. The unprecedented announcement, less than four months before the election, upended what both parties see as the most consequential race in generations.
The president, who intends to serve out the remainder of his term, quickly endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to challenge Trump, urging his party to back her, and she quickly became the party’s leading candidate for the presidential nomination. August tournament in Chicago.
The announcement was the latest shock wave in the tumultuous race for the White House. Assassination attempt Trump’s remarks at a rally in Pennsylvania.
Never before had a party’s presidential nomination withdrawn so close to an election: President Lyndon Johnson, dogged by the Vietnam War, announced in March 1968 after just one state primary that he would not seek reelection. Biden’s July decision came after more than 14 million Democrats voted in his favor throughout the primaries.
In a statement, Harris praised Biden’s “selfless and patriotic act” and said he intended to “earn and win” the party’s nomination.
“I will do everything in my power to unite the Democratic Party — and the country — to defeat Donald Trump and his extreme Project 2025 agenda,” she said.
Biden’s decision to step down comes after he faced growing pressure from his Democratic allies to step down. June 27th debateThe 81-year-old president was at a loss for words and often gave incomprehensible answers, and the former president Many lies.
“Serving as your president has been the greatest honor of my life. While I intended to seek reelection, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and our country for me to step down and focus solely on fulfilling the duties of my presidency for the remainder of my term,” Biden wrote in the letter, posted to his X account on Sunday.
Biden endorsed Harris about 30 minutes after announcing he was quitting the campaign.
“Today I want to fully endorse and support Kamala to be our party’s nominee this year,” he said in another post on X. “Democrats, now is the time to come together and defeat Trump.”
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There were early signs that the party was coalescing around Harris — she had the backing of the Congressional Black Caucus and former Presidents Bill and Hillary Clinton even before Biden said he was dropping out of the race — but most notably, former President Barack Obama withheld his support and pledged his support to Harris when she eventually became the party’s nominee.
“We are honored to join the President in endorsing Vice President Harris and will do all we can to support her,” former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in a statement.
But President Obama, who had privately expressed doubts about Biden’s chances of reelection, stopped short of endorsing Harris, while praising Biden’s decision to drop out of the race.
“I have extraordinary confidence that the leadership of our party can create a process that will produce high-quality candidates,” he said in a statement.
Biden’s decision came as he was isolating at his Delaware beach house after being diagnosed with COVID-19 last week and discussing his political future with close friends and family. He said he would address the nation later this week to provide “details” about his decision.
Campaign officials and White House staff were notified minutes before the letter was sent, according to people familiar with the matter. The decision was made carefully as Mr. Biden has been mulling over his future in recent days.
Democrats are now racing to get their nomination process coherent within a matter of weeks and convince voters in a surprisingly short space of time that their nominee can get the job done and beat Trump, while Trump must shift his focus from years of focusing on Biden to his new opponent.
The decision marks a swift and surprising end to Biden’s 52 years in electoral politics. Donors, lawmakers, and even aides. They told him they doubted he could convince voters he could handle the job for the next four years.
Biden wins The majority of representatives and All but one of the nomination raceshis nomination would have been a formality. Now that he has declined, those delegates are free to support him. Another candidate.
Harris, 59, seemed the natural successor because she is the only candidate with direct access to Biden’s campaign funds, according to federal campaign finance rules.
Biden’s endorsement would pave the way for Harris, but it doesn’t guarantee a smooth transition of power.
Democratic National Convention The party was scheduled to take place in Chicago from August 19 to 22, but Virtual roll call to formally nominate Biden before in-person hearings begin.
It remains to be seen whether other candidates will challenge Ms Harris for the nomination. Democratic National Committee Chairman Jaime Harrison said in a statement that the party would “conduct a transparent and orderly process” to select “a candidate who can defeat Donald Trump in November.”
Trump responded to the news in a post on his website Truth Social, saying Biden was “completely unqualified to run for President, let alone serve in the office.”
“We will suffer greatly from his presidency, but the damage he caused will be quickly repaired,” he added. “Let’s Make America Great Again!”
Trump and his campaign had made clear their intention to run against Biden, but as pressure on Biden to step down has grown, the Trump campaign has stepped up its attacks on Harris.
Democratic Party officials, including many who had tried to remove Biden from the election, quickly issued statements praising Biden’s decision.
“Obviously, his decision was not easy, but he has once again put our country, our party and our future first,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York, said. “Today, Joe, you proved you are a true patriot and a great American.”
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York praised Biden as “one of the most brilliant and influential leaders in American history.”
Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson said Biden should immediately resign if he isn’t qualified to run for president. “I wish November 5th could come sooner,” Johnson said in a statement.
In addition to his planned address to the nation, Biden is scheduled to host Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House this week, according to a person familiar with the president’s schedule but not authorized to comment publicly.
The exact timing of the meeting has yet to be decided as Biden continues to recover from COVID-19. Netanyahu is due to address Congress on Wednesday and is also scheduled to meet with Vice President Kamala Harris during his visit to Washington.
In 2020, Biden pitched himself as a transitional figure who wanted to be a bridge to a new generation of leadership, but once he had secured a position hard won over decades, he was reluctant to relinquish it.
Biden was once asked whether he thought another Democrat could beat Trump.
“Probably 50,” Biden responded. “No, I’m not the only one who can beat him, but I would beat him.”
Already the oldest president of the United States, Biden has repeatedly insisted he is ready to fight for another election and another term, telling voters simply to “pay attention to me.”
And they watched him. His debate performance was poor. Democrats and donors publicly voiced fears they had been voicing privately for months that they didn’t believe Trump could serve another four years in the job, sparking a wave of anxiety.
Concerns about Biden’s age stem from Seeking reelectionAlthough President Trump is 78 years old and just three years younger than most Americans, He’s too old for a second term.According to an August 2023 poll, Associated Press-NORC Public Policy Research CenterThe majority also doubt his mental capacity Being president is hard, but that’s also Trump’s weakness.
Biden has often said that while he is not as young as he once was, cannot walk as easily or speak as smoothly as he once did, he has wisdom and decades of experience that he thinks are extremely valuable.
“I take this as Biden: I wouldn’t run again if I didn’t believe I could do this job with all my heart and soul,” he told supporters at a rally in North Carolina the day after the debate. “Because, frankly, the stakes are just too high.”
But voters had other issues with Trump: He was deeply unpopular as a leader, even as his administration led the country through recovery from a global pandemic, presided over a booming economy, and passed major bipartisan legislation that will impact the country for years to come. A majority of Americans claim that Trump views him as “unpopular.” I’m dissatisfied with the way he does his jobHis approval rating on key issues such as the economy and immigration remains low.
Biden’s motivations for running are deeply intertwined with those of Trump, who served as vice president for eight years under the Obama administration and retired from public office after the death of his son Beau. I decided to run This was in response to Trump’s comments after the “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017, when white supremacists descended on the city to protest the removal of Confederate monuments.
“There were some very bad people in that group, but there were also very good people on both sides — on both sides,” Trump said.
Biden’s wife, Jill Biden, responded to the president’s announcement by reposting Biden’s letter announcing his decision and adding a red heart emoji.
“I am nothing but proud of my father,” his granddaughter Naomi Biden Neal said on social media. She said he served his country “with his whole heart and soul and unparalleled service” and that “our world is in so many ways better today because of him.”
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Superville reported from Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. Associated Press writers Jill Colvin in New York and Ammar Madani in Washington contributed to this report.
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