President Joe Biden has dropped out of the 2024 race in a seismic decision sparked by a relentless campaign from Democrats demanding he drop out because of his cognitive decline and his dire chances against Donald Trump.
The 81-year-old stepped aside Sunday after facing weeks of questions over his fitness to serve following his disastrous presidential debate performance that sparked a series of fumbles he could not recover from.
His historic move comes after a 50-year career in politics that culminated in the White House.
Biden announced his historic decision in a one-page letter where he committed to completing his term and soon after posted a follow-up tweet endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris as his replacement.
Now Democrats must race to shore up their campaign behind a new nominee with less than four months until voting day.
‘It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President,’ Biden wrote in a letter posted to his X account on Sunday.
‘And while it has been my intention to seek reelection,’ he went on, ‘I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term.’
President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race and ended his reelection bid after a slew of backlash for his car crash debate performance on June 27 against Donald Trump
The announcement came the same day a slew of Democrats went on Sunday shows to insist the President was not stepping down and would continue his reelection efforts.
Biden said he would speak in more detail about his decision in remarks to the country later this week.
Last week, Biden was pulled from the campaign trail after he was diagnosed with COVID-19 in the middle of a west coast swing. This led to even more speculation that he would soon drop out of the race.
In the showdown against Trump last month, Biden was often seen on split screen with his mouth agape and a million-mile blank stare. During his time to speak at the podium, the President would stumble, freeze, lose his train of thought and mumble his way through answers to moderator’s questions.
At one point just 12 minutes into the debate, Trump said: ‘I really don’t know what he said at the end of that sentence. I don’t think he knows what he said either.’
Trump said in a post-debate rally in Chesapeake, Virginia that he was skeptical Biden would actually drop out of the race, claiming Democrats don’t have a better option against him in November.
Luckily, Biden was not yet the Democratic Party’s official nominee and there is still a short time to replace him.
The nomination convention is August 19-22 in Chicago, Illinois.
Among the top contenders for Biden’s spot are Vice President Harris, who was initially furious over reports she was not being considered for the spot, as well as California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.
Some, including Trump, speculated that former First Lady Michelle Obama is among the list of replacements for the 2024 Democratic ticket.
Biden announced his historic decision to step aside in a one-page letter where he committed to completing his term, but did not fully endorse Vice President Kamala Harris as his replacement
The most likely path now is for Harris to step in and take over Biden’s campaign. Pictured: VP Harris campaigns in the swing state of North Carolina on Thursday, July 18
Both Newsom and Whitmer have denied before and after the debate that they are seeking to replace Biden on the ballot.
Biden and his team and allies spent the weekend after the debate in damage control mode trying to quell concerns that the President is no longer fit for a second term.
And despite many party leaders and campaign officials defending Biden’s performance, Democrats were in an all-out panic after the President stumbled and mumbled his way through the debate.
The campaign said Biden’s raspy and hard-to-hear voice was the result of a cold and tried to sell the line that it was just a ‘slow start.’
Some speculate someone like California Gov. Gavin Newsom (left) or Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (right) would make a better replacement – but polls do not show them faring better than Biden against Trump
Some felt First Lady Jill Biden was the only pushing for her 81-year-old husband to remain on the ballot.
Rep. Harriet Hageman (R-Wy.) accused the first lady of ‘elder abuse’ and Rep. Jen Kiggans (R-Va.) wrote on X: ‘As a geriatric nurse practitioner who cared for so many older adults with cognitive impairment, this [debate] is heartbreaking to watch…’
Democratic National Committee Chairman Jaime Harrison and Biden’s campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez held a call Saturday afternoon where they sought to reassure rank and file members of the party of his continued viability as a candidate.
According to some on the call, the party leaders largely ignored Biden’s weak showing in Atlanta on Thursday and downplayed the avalanche of criticism that followed. No one was able to ask questions and the chat function was disabled.
The members felt gaslighted by Harrison and Rodriguez and claimed they were being asked to ignore the ire situation of the party’s predicament – either toe the line and get behind Biden’s candidacy or scramble to find a replacement in just one month’s time.
Harrison offered what they described as a rosy assessment of Biden’s path forward.
‘I was hoping for more of a substantive conversation instead of, ‘Hey, let’s go out there and just be cheerleaders,’ without actually addressing a very serious issue that unfolded on American television for millions of people to see,’ Joe Salazar, an elected DNC member from Colorado who was on the call, said, according to the Associated Press .
He added: ‘There were a number of things that could have been said in addressing the situation. But we didn’t get that. We were being gaslit.’
President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden held a campaign rally in Raleigh, North Carolina the day after the debate where the President appeared more energetic and defended his viability as a candidate while acknowledging his debate performance could have been better
