Bowing to relentless pressure from members of his own party more than three weeks after his disastrous debate performance on June 27, President Joe Biden announced on Sunday that he will not seek re-election. With three and a half months until Election Day and one month until the Democratic National Convention, this represents a seismic shift in a race Former President Donald Trump has been leading for the entirety of 2024. Minutes after announcing his withdrawal on X, Biden endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for the top of the ticket:
“My very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my Vice President. And it’s been 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. Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump. Let’s do this.”
While a consensus appeared to be building in Democratic circles around replacing Biden with Harris, party leaders have not yet announced plans for filling out the ballot, whether there will be a so-called mini-primary open to all comers, and who is being considered as their new vice-presidential candidate.
We will update this story regularly as details emerge.
Following is the letter Biden released on X on July 21, 2024 announcing his withdrawal.
