President Biden announced Sunday he is dropping out of the race against former President Donald Trump, ceding to unrelenting pressure from Democrats who said his declining abilities and poll numbers would drag down the party and lead to certain defeat in November.
The move upends the 2024 presidential race just weeks before early voting begins and leaves Democrats scrambling to anoint a new ticket. Mr. Biden endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to lead the ticket.
“It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your president,” said Mr. Biden, 81, in a letter posted on X. “And while it has been my intention to seek reelection, 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 duties as president for the remainder of my term.
“For now, let me express my deepest gratitude to all those who have worked so hard to see me reelected. I want to thank Vice President Kamala Harris for being an extraordinary partner in all this work. And let me express my heartfelt appreciation to the American people for the faith and trust you have placed in me.”
Mr Biden said he will address the country later this week “in more detail” about his position.
The president said of Ms. Harris, “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.”
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Mr. Biden’s decision is historic and puts the Democratic Party in uncharted territory with fewer than four months until Election Day and just a few weeks before early voting begins in many states.
The move shifts attention to Ms. Harris, 59, who ran alongside Mr. Biden during the primary campaign and is most likely to rise to the top of the ticket. But Democrats could decide to hold an open convention in Chicago, where multiple candidates could run and the winner would be decided by the convention’s roughly 4,700 delegates.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, a popular Democrat from a battleground state, and North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, a veteran politician in a state that has seemed in reach but eluded Democrats for years, are among other Democratic contenders. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and California Gov. Gavin Newsom are also in the mix.
The DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee met on Friday to set the stage for an online virtual vote to nominate Mr. Biden by Aug. 5. Mr. Biden, who secured nearly all of the delegates in the 2024 Democratic primary, was the only name on the online ballot.
The DNC will have to decide whether it still plans to nominate their candidate online, but with other names to choose from — presumably Ms. Harris among them. The nominee would need the backing of roughly 300 delegates to get on the ballot.
Democrats also could postpone picking a new candidate until delegates meet in person at the Aug. 19-22 convention in Chicago.
Among the reasons Ms. Harris is a favorite to replace Mr. Biden is it will ensure the Biden-Harris war chest remains with the ticket, which is critical for funding the campaign. Party leaders are also leery of the reaction from the Democratic base if they decide to bypass Ms. Harris, who would be the first female Black nominee.
Ms. Harris has suffered from low poll numbers, but some surveys show her outperforming Mr. Biden.
Mr. Biden’s decision to leave is seismic. Yet it also felt inevitable, given the chaos that enveloped him after a disastrous debate performance against Mr. Trump on June 27.
The president’s halting voice and stares exposed longstanding fears that Mr. Biden was too old to be president and declining in cognitive ability.
It led to soul-searching among Democrats who felt Mr. Biden’s signs of aging were apparent for years and should have been debated before the presidential cycle began last year. Democrats also are worried that fundraising has dried up.
Mr. Biden continued to mix up names and give halting responses in interviews following the debate, cementing the feeling he needed to step aside.
A failed assassination attempt on Mr. Trump eased pressure on Mr. Biden for a few days, only for it to return in full force as Mr. Trump basked in the glow of the GOP convention while the president contracted COVID-19, placing him in physical and political isolation.
• Susan Ferrechio can be reached at sferrechio@washingtontimes.com.
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
• Mallory Wilson can be reached at mwilson@washingtontimes.com.