President Biden made a historic decision to drop out of the 2024 Presidential race Sunday after months of pressure from Democrats to relinquish his position.
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
It’s been less than four months since Biden was declared the Democratic Party’s presumptive nominee, but tensions peaked after a disastrous debate performance with former President Trump. The 81-year-old struggled to maintain his train of thought and slurred throughout the debate, drawing questions about his fitness for office with just months remaining before the election. More than 30 Democrats had called on Biden to pull out before his official statement.
Biden quickly endorsed VP Kamala Harris for the Presidential seat, but officials confirmed he intends to serve out the remainder of his term. This means Biden will remain at the helm until noon on Jan. 20, 2025. Trump’s campaign didn’t take long to capitalize on Biden’s decision to drop out, launching a fundraising campaign on Biden’s ‘COMPLETE DISGRACE!’
Democrats are working hard to shift the narrative of Biden’s greatest failure to a success story. Rep. Earl Blumenauer said Biden, “cemented his legacy in American history as the greatest president in the last 50 years.”
With more than fifty years of civil service under his belt, Biden’s legacy will likely remain shrouded in controversy after a rocky presidency marked by multiple scandals and failures.