President Joe Biden is dropping out of the 2024 presidential race, he said Sunday.
The 81-year-old commander in chief announced his exit in a letter posted to social media. His decision follows a lackluster debate performance that kicked off a growing number of calls from fellow Democrats to withdraw. Biden also tested positive for COVID-19 this week.
“It’s been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President,” Biden said in the letter. “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 my duties as President for the remainder of my term.”
In a separate post on X (formerly Twitter), Biden endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as the nominee.
“Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump. Let’s do this,” Biden said.
He also said he will address the nation later this week to discuss his decision not to run.
“I believe today what I always have: that there is nothing America can’t do – when we do it together. We just have to remember we are the United States of America,” Biden said in the letter.
Biden will remain in office until the end of his term, which ends at noon on Jan. 20, 2025.
What happens if Biden leaves the race?
The candidate will not be officially nominated until the Democratic National Convention, which begins Aug. 19 in Chicago.
It’s not quite clear how the Democrats’ official nomination process will work; such a situation is unprecedented.
At least 3,896 delegates are pledged to Biden, after he swept nearly every primary contest. DNC rules encourage but don’t specifically require delegates to vote for the candidate they’re pledged to support, yet delegates rarely abandon their pledged candidate. With Biden out of the race, they’ll be free to support someone else.
A committee could determine how things will work before the convention.
