US President Joe Biden has officially withdrawn his candidacy in the 2024 US presidential election, but after the president had repeatedly reiterated his commitment to seeking a second term, questions persist over who convinced him to finally drop out. According to a new report from Politico the president was urged to end his campaign by his two closest aides, Mike Donilon and Steve Ricchetti.
Ricchetti visited Biden at his home in Delaware Friday while Donilon met with the president Saturday, the report claimed. The two showed the president dismal fundraising and polling data, which was reportedly the primary motivator in convincing the president to drop out of the race.
The US president made his first public appearance since the decision Tuesday after a weekend spent recovering from Covid 19 at his home in Delaware. The president said he was “feeling well” as he boarded Air Force One but did not answer questions about the presidential race. Biden was en route to the White House, and it is expected he will explain his decision to drop out during an address to the nation Wednesday.
Biden’s decision to end his campaign is the “best thing right now for the Democratic Party,” said Anton Konev, a member of the Albany County Democratic Committee in the US state of New York who spoke to Sputnik Sunday. Konev claimed the change would allow Democrats to regroup and “reunite.”
Biden endorsed his vice president, Kamala Harris, to take his place as the Democratic nominee and his campaign funds have reportedly been transferred to her campaign. Although Harris is not yet the party's official nominee, many Democratic lawmakers and elites have endorsed her candidacy and a majority of delegates to the party's convention have said they will back her.
"I am proud to have secured the broad support needed to become our party's nominee, and as a daughter of California, I am proud that my home state's delegation helped put our campaign over the top. I look forward to formally accepting the nomination soon," Harris said in a statement posted on X.
"Over the next few months, I will be traveling across the country talking to Americans about everything that is on the line. I fully intend to unite our party, unite our nation and defeat Donald Trump in November," the statement read.
Democrats reportedly plan to hold a virtual roll call vote to confirm their nominee as early as August 1 and no later than August 7, although the Democratic National Convention will not begin until August 19. Only 300 signatures will be required to qualify for a virtual ballot, and an AP survey of convention delegates from across the US found Harris had the backing of more than 1,900 delegates as of Monday night.
On Tuesday, Harris visited the key battleground state of Wisconsin and quickly went on the offensive. "I know Donald Trump's type," Harris said, recounting her days as a prosecutor who pursued fraud cases, according to The New York Times.
The Vice President touted the prospect of representation for younger generations of Americans as well as her promise to protect access to abortion. Age has often been considered a weakness for both Trump, 78 and Biden, 81. Harris is 59 years old, six years younger than the average US retirement age of 65.