President Joe Biden has announced that he’s dropping out of the race and ending his presidential campaign but plans to serve the remainder of his term. He has endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to replace him.
In a statement posted to his X account on Sunday, Biden said that he had “decided not to accept the nomination and to focus all my energies on my duties as President for the remainder of my term.”
Biden added that he was endorsing Harris for the presidential nomination, touting her as the candidate to defeat Republican nominee, former President Donald Trump.
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“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,” he continued. “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.”
In a statement shared with The Christian Post, Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., said if Biden is incapable of running for re-election, then he is also incapable of serving out the remainder of his presidency.
“If Joe Biden can’t run for re-election, he is unable and unfit to serve as President of the United States. He must immediately resign,” Stefanik said.
“The Democrat Party is in absolute free fall for their blatantly corrupt and desperate attempt to cover up the fact that Joe Biden is unfit for office,” she added. “Every elected Democrat in America owns Joe Biden’s failed and feckless record causing the border crisis, Bidenflation, and chaos and weakness around the world. President Trump will win this November to save America.”
My fellow Democrats, I have decided not to accept the nomination and to focus all my energies on my duties as President for the remainder of my term. 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… pic.twitter.com/x8DnvuImJV
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) July 21, 2024
In recent weeks, many prominent Democrats and progressive activists have asked Biden to drop out of the presidential race and have someone else secure the party’s nomination.
On Sunday Sen. Joe Manchin, I-W.Va., joined a growing list of Democrats who have been calling for Biden to drop out of the presidential race.
Manchin left the Democratic Party in May but continues to caucus with Democrats, became the fifth senator to call for Biden to drop out of the presidential race.
“I came to the decision with a heavy heart that I think it’s time to pass the torch to a new generation,” Manchin told CNN opinion host Jake Tapper on “State of the Union” on Sunday.
“I want him to be the president in the last five months of this presidency of his term, to do what he can do is unite our country, to calm down the rhetoric and be able to focus attention to peace in the world,” Manchin said.
While many have speculated about the 81-year-old Biden’s health during his term in office, his widely criticized debate performance last month spurred greater concern about these issues.
The New York Times editorial board was among those calling for Biden to step aside, writing in a piece published shortly after the debate against Trump that “Biden is not the man he was four years ago.”
“He struggled to explain what he would accomplish in a second term. He struggled to respond to Mr. Trump’s provocations. He struggled to hold Mr. Trump accountable for his lies, his failures and his chilling plans. More than once, he struggled to make it to the end of a sentence,” stated the editors.
“As it stands, the president is engaged in a reckless gamble. There are Democratic leaders better equipped to present clear, compelling and energetic alternatives to a second Trump presidency.”
Initially, Biden stood by his decision to run for reelection, telling NBC News anchor Lester Holt that his mental fitness was fine and that he could defeat Trump.
“I’m old,” Biden told Holt. “But I’m only three years older than Trump, No. 1. And No. 2, my mental acuity’s been pretty damn good. I’ve gotten more done than any president has in a long, long time in 3½ years. So I’m willing to be judged on that.”
NBC News noted in its report, however, that during the interview with Holt, “Biden mumbled at some points, and his voice trailed off at others.”
Last Wednesday, the Times reported that, while Biden wanted to stay in the race, he had become more open to hearing arguments in favor of him dropping out.
The newspaper quoted an unnamed source close to Biden as saying that the incumbent was “willing to listen,” though there was no indication at the time that he was changing his mind.
Biden is the oldest person to serve as president, having beaten the record set by Republican President Ronald Reagan, who was 77 when he left office on Jan. 20, 1989.
