President Joe Biden announced Sunday that he is dropping his reelection bid against Donald Trump, in a social media post that sent political shockwaves around the country and threw an element of turmoil into the election just months before voters go to the polls.
Biden’s decision came on the heels of a poor debate performance that prompted many rank-and-file Democratic lawmakers to urge him to withdraw from the race. The president said he will address the nation later this week “in more detail about my decision.”
Biden threw his support behind Vice President Kamala Harris to be the Democrats’ new candidate, and she vowed to “earn and win” the nomination.
Republican leaders attacked Harris and said she shares responsibility for the policies of the Biden administration. Former President Donald Trump said Biden “was not fit to run for president,” and he also called for the second debate to be moved from ABC to the Fox News Channel, which is seen as friendlier to him.
Here’s the Latest:
Democrats promise ‘orderly process’ to replace Biden. Harris is favored, but questions remain
Shortly after President Joe Biden announced that he would drop his reelection campaign, Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison had a message: There would be no automatic coronation for his replacement.
“In the coming days, the party will undertake a transparent and orderly process to move forward,” Harrison said in a statement. “This process will be governed by established rules and procedures of the party. Our delegates are prepared to take seriously their responsibility in swiftly delivering a candidate to the American people.“
The comment reflected the reality that while Vice President Kamala Harris is emerging as the prohibitive favorite to become the nominee — backed already by Biden and many Democrats — it’s not so simple. And for now, the party isn’t offering many details on what happens next.
Read more about the process of replacing Biden on the Democratic ticket.
Outside the White House: ‘We love you Joe!’
Dozens of people came to the street outside the presidential residence as news of Biden’s withdrawal from the campaign set in.
There were signs with messages like “We love you Joe!” and chants of “Thank you Joe!” as adults and some children took photos or just gazed at the complex that serves as both the president’s home and the seat of executive power.
Biden was not at the White House this weekend. Instead he was recuperating from COVID-19 at his vacation home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware.
Another sign read: “You did it, Joe! Now let’s make some history,” a reference to Harris’ exclamation of “We did it, Joe!” during a phone call with Biden after their ticket was determined to have won the 2020 election.
Biden’s decision to drop out crystalized Sunday. His staff knew one minute before the public did
At 1:45 p.m., President Joe Biden’s senior staff was notified that he was stepping away from the 2024 race. At 1:46 p.m., that message was made public.
It was never Biden’s intention to leave the race: Up until he decided to step aside Sunday, he was all in.
His campaign was planning fundraisers and events and setting up travel over the next few weeks. But even as Biden was publicly dug in and insisting he was staying in the race, he was quietly reflecting on the disaster of the past few weeks, on the past three years of his presidency and on the scope of his half-century career in politics.
In the end, it was the president’s decision alone, and he made it quietly, from his vacation home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, sick with COVID-19, the first lady with him as he talked it through with a small circle of people who have been with him for decades.
Read more about his decision.
Sen. Manchin considers reregistering as a Democrat to seek the presidential nomination
Though some potential challengers to Harris for the Democratic bid have already made it clear they would not run, there is some early indication that she might not be alone in seeking the nomination.
West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, who left the party earlier this year to become an independent, is considering reregistering as a Democrat to vie for the nomination against the vice president, according to Jonathan Kott, a longtime adviser to Manchin.
Manchin, who repeatedly irked Democrats with his independent streak but was also a lynchpin for the Biden administration’s biggest legislative accomplishments, was the latest senator to call on Biden to drop his candidacy before the president made his announcement Sunday.
In Harris’ hometown, a voter looks forward to having her as a candidate but says she must move quickly
Christian Garcia of Oakland, California, said he’s looking forward to having Harris become more widely known to voters nationwide. But Garcia also said Harris, who was born in Oakland, must move fast if she is to get the nomination and beat Trump.
“I mean, you’re talking about a really quick turnaround,” Garcia said. “She’s got a lot of work to do, and the party’s got a lot of work to do to get behind her.”
In his view, one of Harris’ main challenges is a problem that hurt Hillary Clinton: an ability to be relatable to average voters. Garcia also worries that the Trump campaign will stop at nothing to go after Harris.
“We know Trump and his allies will do anything they can to lie and make up stories and bring out old skeletons,” he said.
Garcia, 36, commended Biden for stepping aside, calling him a “statesman.”
In swing state Pennsylvania, a Trump backer says Biden’s exit long overdue
Kristine Stoll is a Trump backer from Dunmore, which is next door to Scranton, where Biden was born. She said Biden isn’t mentally stable enough to run the country.
“It’s about time, he should have dropped out a long time ago,” said Stoll, 56.
She does not fear Harris or really anyone else who could top the Democratic ticket when it comes to winning the key battleground state.
“Trump’s going to take Pennsylvania this time, definitely going to take Pennsylvania,” Stoll said. “There’s no doubt about it, doesn’t matter who runs.”
Democrats begin to rally around Harris after Biden exits, though campaign dynamics remain in flux
Democrats quickly rallied around Vice President Kamala Harris as their likely presidential nominee Sunday after President Joe Biden ’s ground-shaking decision to bow out of the 2024 race.
Among others, endorsements came from Biden; Bill and Hillary Clinton; prominent U.S. senators; a wide swath of House representatives and members of the influential Congressional Black Caucus; and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, who has been the subject of speculation as a potential running mate.
But the fast-moving political situation remains volatile just months before the November election.
Read more here about Democrats rallying around Harris.
Zelenskyy: ‘We will always be thankful for President Biden’s leadership’
“We respect today’s tough but strong decision,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a post on the social platform X.
“We will always be thankful for President Biden’s leadership. He supported our country during the most dramatic moment in history, assisted us in preventing Putin from occupying our country, and has continued to support us throughout this terrible war.”
Zelenskyy spoke with former President Trump by phone Friday. Both men described it as a good call on X.
Democrats are poised to attack Trump’s age
A political weakness that hounded Biden — age — could become an avenue for attack against Trump.
“This will probably boil down to Donald Trump, who is the oldest nominee in history, against Kamala Harris,” said Rep. Maxwell Frost, a 27-year-old Democrat from Florida who has worked to reach young voters for Biden’s campaign.
Frost, who endorsed Harris, pointed to the vice president’s work on gun violence protection as an issue that could engage young voters and said she “will be able to win back a lot of the youth vote.”
“She is someone who really values young voices in general,” he said.
Harris could become first woman, second Black person to be president
She’s already broken barriers, and now Kamala Harris could shatter several more after President Joe Biden abruptly ended his reelection bid and endorsed her.
Harris is the first woman, Black person or person of South Asian descent to serve as vice president. If she becomes the Democratic nominee and defeats Republican candidate Donald Trump in November, she would be the first woman to serve as president.
Read a profile of Harris here.
Trump says Biden was ‘not fit to run’
Former president Donald Trump posted on his social network Truth Social that “Crooked Joe Biden was not fit to run for president” and is not fit to serve.
“All those around him, including his Doctor and the Media, knew that he wasn’t capable of being President, and he wasn’t,” he said.
Trump and members of the RNC spent much of their week at the Republican National Convention calling for a ratcheting down of the political temperature and touting the importance of American unity in light of last week’s assassination attempt.
The former president is also calling for the second debate to be switched to the Fox News Channel, which is seen as friendlier to him, now that Biden has dropped out.
He said in a Truth Social post that whoever becomes the Democratic nominee should face him on that network “rather than the very biased ABC.” Trump and Biden had previously agreed to meet in a second debate Sept. 10 hosted by ABC.
Harris hits the phones
As Vice President Harris looks to lock up the nomination, she is hitting the phones and making her case to Democrats in Congress.
She spoke with Democratic lawmakers Sunday including Rep. Annie Kuster, who chairs a moderate group called the New Democrat Coalition and endorsed Harris in the afternoon.
Harris also quickly won endorsements from leadership in several influential caucuses.
While some Democrats remained silent on who they want for a nominee, many others said the party should immediately assemble behind Harris. They want to quickly move past the painful, public deliberations of the weeks since the July 27 debate.
Harris inherits Biden’s campaign infrastructure
President Biden’s campaign formally changed its name to Harris for President, reflecting that she is inheriting his political operation — a sign of the prohibitive leg up she has for the Democratic nomination.
Democratic groups, including the Democratic National Committee, also filed paperwork changing the names of their joint fundraising committees to reflect Harris’ candidacy.
Meanwhile Biden urged his vast list of supporters to contribute to what is now the Harris campaign, saying in an email sent Sunday afternoon that picking her as his running mate is the “best decision I’ve made.”
“Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year,” Biden wrote. “Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump. And if you’re with us, donate to her campaign.”
Biden’s legacy: far-reaching accomplishments that didn’t translate into political support
Historians and political advisers say history will be kinder to President Joe Biden than voters have been.
David Axelrod, a former senior adviser to President Barack Obama, said Biden’s legacy will include many legislative achievements, but above all, he will be remembered as the president who defeated Donald Trump.
Read more about Biden’s legacy
White House expects no serious challenge to Harris; convention delegates show early signs of unity
Inside the White House, there’s low expectation that Harris will get a serious challenge following Biden’s endorsement, according to a person familiar with deliberations who requested anonymity to discuss the private conversations.
Among potential top tier contenders, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has already said she won’t run, while California Gov. Gavin Newsom has said he would back Harris if she became the nominee.
Other names that have been bandied about as viable contenders — including Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper — would also seem unlikely to run in light of Biden’s endorsement for Harris and the expected fundraising advantage she would hold over anyone else.
Meanwhile delegates who are pledged to support Biden at the Democratic National Convention expressed admiration for the president and also showed early signs of uniting around Harris.
“I believe it’s her time and has earned the right to be our nominee,” said Paul Pezzella, a Massachusetts delegate who has been active in Democratic politics for decades. “I can’t think any American isn’t sad about Biden’s decision and that he has proven to be a patriot.”
Lee Cutler, political coordinator for the Northeast Area Labor Council affiliated with the Minnesota AFL-CIO, said he wishes Democrats had been able to start the process of replacing Biden earlier in the electoral cycle but he is also proud of the president.
“When we were voting for Biden, we were also voting for Kamala Harris,” Cutler said. “We were voting for an 82-year-old man.”
— Aamer Madhani
Upcoming Biden-Netanyahu meeting is still on
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will meet with President Joe Biden at the White House this week as planned, despite Biden’s withdrawal from the presidential race, a person familiar with Biden’s schedule said Sunday.
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly, said the exact timing of the meeting has not been established because Biden is recovering from COVID-19.
Netanyahu is scheduled to deliver an address to Congress on Wednesday. He is also expected to meet with Vice President Kamala Harris, who is now seeking the Democratic Party’s nomination.
An official in Netanyahu’s office confirmed that the Israeli leader was set to travel to Washington, as scheduled, on Monday. The official also spoke on condition of anonymity pending a formal announcement.
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