Biden Withdrew

On July 21, 2024, Joe Biden, the 46th president of the United States, announced his withdrawal from the 2024 United States presidential election.

Biden, a Democrat who had been elected president in 2020, stated on April 25, 2023 that he would run for re-election in 2024 with Vice President Kamala Harris as his running mate. Biden went on to win an overwhelming majority of delegates in the 2024 Democratic Party presidential primaries, where he easily defeated challengers such as Representative Dean Phillips and became the Party's presumptive nominee.

Concerns about Biden's age and health had emerged during his presidency. These concerns increased following the June 2024 presidential debate between Biden and Republican Party candidate Donald Trump. Biden's debate performance was widely criticized; he lost his train of thought, had a faltering appearance, spoke with a hoarse voice, and failed to recall statistics or coherently express his opinion on several occasions. While he insisted that he would continue his campaign, Biden subsequently faced calls from fellow Democrats and from the editorial boards of major news outlets to withdraw from the race. By July 19, 2024, more than 30 senior Democrats had called for his withdrawal.

Biden ended his re-election bid on July 21, 2024, becoming the first incumbent president to end a re-election campaign before Election Day since Lyndon B. Johnson in 1968. After adding that he would continue serving as president until the conclusion of his term, Biden endorsed Harris for president. Harris received the Democratic presidential nomination and went on to lose the 2024 election to Trump.

Background

Presidents who did not seek reelection

Historically, most sitting U.S. presidents who completed one full term chose to run for a second. Seven presidents were eligible for reelection after completing at least one full term in office, but chose not to run.

Biden's age and health concerns

Biden was 78 years old at his inauguration, making him the oldest individual to assume the presidency. Biden was also older when he assumed the office than Ronald Reagan, the previous oldest, had been when leaving it. Health concerns surrounding Biden emerged during his presidency, primarily about his age and ability to carry out a second term. In a report in the ''Journal on Active Aging'', doctors noted he had an "exceptional health profile" relative to his age, and a medical assessment performed by physician Kevin O'Connor attested to his physical acuity. Biden's aides dismissed age-related concerns as politically motivated attacks by Republicans.

On July 28, 2022, U.S. Representative Dean Phillips became the first incumbent Democratic member of Congress to say President Biden should not run for re-election; Phillips called for "generational change," pointing to Biden's age. Phillips argued during his presidential campaign that President Biden would be a weak general election candidate due to his age and low approval ratings. In public, Phillips was ridiculed. In private, others in the Democratic Party shared his concerns.

In February 2024, upon concluding the investigation into Biden's handling of classified documents, special counsel Robert Hur suggested that Biden would be able to present himself to a jury as an "elderly man with poor memory". Based on his interview of Biden, Hur wrote that Biden's memory "appeared to have significant limitations". According to a February 2024 poll, Biden's age and health were major or moderate concerns for 86% of voters generally, up from 76% earlier in 2020. According to another 2024 poll, most of those who voted for Biden in 2020 said that they believed he was too old to be an effective president; ''The New York Times'' noted that these concerns "cut across generations, gender, race and education".

Biden 2024 campaign

On April 25, 2023, after months of speculation, Biden confirmed that he would run for reelection to the presidency in the 2024 presidential election with Vice President Kamala Harris as his running mate.

Biden faced opposition from Representative Dean Phillips during the 2024 Democratic Party presidential primaries. Phillips campaigned as a younger alternative to Biden, who would be a stronger opponent for Trump. On March 6, 2024, Phillips suspended his campaign and endorsed Biden.

Debate with Trump

Biden and Trump faced each other in a televised debate on June 27, 2024. Described as a "disaster" for Biden, the debate reinforced concerns about Biden's age. Biden appeared confused and disoriented during the debate's first half and gave meandering answers to questions.
He failed to recall statistics or coherently express his opinion on several occasions.
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''Politico'' described Biden's performance as follows:

The alarm bells for Democrats started ringing the second Biden started speaking in a haltingly hoarse voice. Minutes into the debate, he struggled to mount an effective defense of the economy on his watch and flubbed the description of key health initiatives he’s made central to his reelection bid... He repeatedly mixed up “billion” and “million,” and found himself stuck for long stretches of the 90-minute debate playing defense.

And when he wasn’t speaking, he stood frozen behind his podium, mouth agape, his eyes wide and unblinking for long stretches of time.

Debate aftermath

The debate sent many Democrats "into a panic". The resulting political turmoil within the Democratic Party was referred to as the "Biden crisis". ''Politicos article on the debate was entitled, "Dems freak out over Biden’s debate performance: 'Biden is toast'".

Following the debate, Biden faced calls from fellow Democrats and from the editorial boards of major news outlets to withdraw from the race. However, former President Bill Clinton, former President Barack Obama,
Vice President Kamala Harris, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, and California Gov. Gavin Newsom publicly defended Biden and supported his continued candidacy.

On July 3, 20 Democratic governors met with Biden at the White House and virtually to discuss the debate's effect on his campaign. Following the meeting, Governors Wes Moore of Maryland, Kathy Hochul of New York, and Tim Walz of Minnesota spoke to the press outside of the White House, with Walz specifically admitting that "Thursday night was a bad performance" and a "bad hit".

Biden stated in an ABC News interview with George Stephanopoulos on July 5 that he would not end his candidacy unless "the Lord Almighty came down and said, 'Joe, get out of the race'". He added, "The Lord Almighty's not coming down." According to ''Politico'', "Members of Congress and top Democratic operatives" said that "the president was more energetic and forceful than he was on stage during last week's showdown with Donald Trump — but it likely won't be enough to tame the panic" concerning his campaign.

On July 8, 2024, ''The Wall Street Journal'' reported that Biden's team had limited his schedule, personal interactions, media appearances, interviews, and unscripted exchanges in order to minimize concerns about his age and mental acuity. According to ''Newsweek'', the ''Wall Street Journal'' report stated that Biden "was having 'good and bad days' as far back as 2021".

The Biden campaign attempted to reduce the intensity of the pressure on Biden to withdraw from the race until he could be formally nominated in a virtual roll call vote prior to the Democratic National Convention. In a sports analogy, this effort was described as "running out the clock".

At the July 2024 NATO summit, Biden mistakenly introduced Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as "'President Putin'". He then corrected himself. (Vladimir Putin is the president of Russia, with whom Ukraine was at war at the time.) Later at the same event, Biden confused his running mate with his opponent. When asked a question regarding Vice President Kamala Harris, he responded, "'Look, I wouldn't have picked Vice President Trump to be vice president f I didn'tthink she was not qualified to be president'".

On July 17, ABC News reported that House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer had met with Biden on July 12 and 13, respectively, and had expressed concerns to Biden about potential Democratic losses in Congress that could result from the continuation of his campaign. Biden reportedly told Schumer that he needed another week to make a decision.

Later on July 17, Biden tested positive for COVID-19. He experienced mild symptoms, including a cough, runny nose, and "general malaise". However, images of him looking frail exiting from Air Force One on the way to isolation at his residence in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, fueled further speculation over his health. ''The New York Times'' reported that Biden was "more receptive" to withdrawing his nomination. In phone conversations, former House speaker Nancy Pelosi told Biden she was pessimistic about his candidacy.

By July 19, 2024, more than 30 congressional Democrats had publicly called on Biden to end his presidential campaign. Many more had communicated the same message privately.

CNN reported that on July 20, Biden met with advisors Steve Ricchetti and Mike Donilon. During that meeting, the group concluded that worsening poll numbers and a loss of party support had left the campaign without a plausible path to victory. That evening, Biden began planning a possible exit from the race with Ricchetti, Donilon, and other close aides, and he fully committed to the decision on the morning of July 21.

Biden's withdrawal and replacement

On July 21, 2024, Biden released a letter announcing the withdrawal of his presidential candidacy. In the letter, he wrote, "It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President. 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". Biden thanked his supporters and set forth various areas in which he believed that the nation had made progress during his administration. He concluded, "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's announcement "was met with a rash of statements from Democrats praising his leadership. It also set off a palpable wave of relief among many in the party, including those who feared that his staying on the ticket could jeopardize the party’s chances in down-ballot races". California Gov. Gavin Newsom called Biden "'an extraordinary, history-making president — a leader who has fought hard for working people and delivered astonishing results for all Americans'", adding that Biden would "'go down in history as one of the most impactful and selfless presidents'". In contrast, Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson responded, "'If Joe Biden is not fit to run for president, he is not fit to serve as President. He must resign the office immediately'".

Nearly 30 minutes after he withdrew his candidacy, Biden endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for president. Biden is the first incumbent president since Lyndon B. Johnson in 1968 to withdraw from a reelection race.

On July 24, 2024, in his first appearance since withdrawing from the presidential race, Biden explained his decision. Speaking from the Oval Office, he stated that his reason was the "defense of democracy". Addressing the presidential campaigns, he remarked, "America's going to have to choose between moving forward or backward, between hope and hate, between unity and division".

Biden's pledged delegates were released by virtue of his exit from the race. In a survey of delegates by the Associated Press on July 22, 2024, Harris became the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee after receiving pledges from more than half of the delegates.

On August 5, 2024, Harris was certified as the Democratic presidential nominee after securing the support of 99% of delegates voting in a virtual roll call.

Later developments

After securing the Democratic presidential nomination, Harris went on to lose the general election to Trump. Following Trump's victory, many analysts argued that Biden's decision to run for re-election was a significant factor in the loss of Harris. Jon Favreau of ''Pod Save America'' reported that internal polls by Biden's campaign before his withdrawal found that Trump would win 400 electoral votes against Biden. Former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi suggested that the Democrats would have fared better if Biden had withdrawn from the race sooner. A YouGov poll suggested that Trump would be seven points ahead in a race with Biden (49-42%); Trump won the popular vote 49.8-48.3% against Harris. To the contrary, ''Newsweek'' suggested that Biden would have appealed to more union voters and men than Harris did.

In December 2024, Biden expressed regret for his decision to drop out of the race and added that he believed he could have beaten Trump. In a January 2025 interview, Biden reasserted his belief that he would have won the 2024 election, but added that he doubted if he would have had the vigor to complete four more years in the White House. ''The Wall Street Journal'' reported later that month that Biden's claims had caused a rift between him and Harris.

References

External links

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from Joe Biden on X (formerly Twitter) announcing his withdrawal
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