By: Jerry Zhang
On July 21, 2024, President Biden announced that he would not seek re-election after mounting pressure from members of the Democratic Party and the general population following his dismal performance in the Presidential debate in June 2024, where he appeared frail and confused. The poor poll numbers that followed caused many Democrats to fear that Biden would be unable to win against Trump in the upcoming election.
In a social media post announcing this sudden change, President Biden said, “It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President, and while it has been my intention to seek re-election, 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.”
IPresident Biden has thrown his support behind Vice-President Kamala Harris as his replacement in the upcoming 2024 elections, stating, “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.” Several other members of the Democratic Party, such as former President Bill Clinton, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and former Speaker Nancy Pelosi have also expressed their support for Vice-President Harris. However, former President Barack Obama has not backed her.
This is an unprecedented move by President Biden. No president in U.S. history has dropped out of the presidential race so late into the election cycle, leaving only 107 days for Kamala Harris to consolidate support from fellow Democrats and establish herself as a capable leader. Nevertheless, recent polls by several news agencies including Reuters, PBS, and Fox have shown her keeping up with and even ahead of former President Trump.
Many Republicans have voiced their opinions on President Biden’s announcement. Mr. Trump wrote on his social media site, “Joe Biden was not fit to run for President, and is certainly not fit to serve — And never was!” Speaker Mike Johnson demanded that Mr. Biden resign from the Presidency, stating, “If Joe Biden is not fit to run for president, he is not fit to serve as president, he must resign the office immediately.”
With President Biden’s political career coming to a close, it is time to see what he has done over his 50-year career. Starting in 1972, President Biden was elected as a U.S. Senator and served for 36 years. During that time, he had a strong focus on foreign relations and political justice.
His first Presidential campaign was in 1988 but he withdrew soon after it was discovered that his speech had been partially plagiarized from Neil Kinnock, the leader of the British Labour Party. Then in 2008, he was former President Barack Obama’s running mate and became the Vice-President until 2016. As vice president, President Biden played a pivotal role, serving as an advisor to former President Obama, shaping U.S. policy in Iraq, and more. . In 2020, President Biden became the President of the United States, beating out former President Donald Trump. As president, President Biden helped in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, expanding voters’ rights and LGBTQ+ rights, as well as strengthening the economy.
This sudden shakeup of the political landscape will dramatically affect the dynamics of the 2024 presidential elections, with both parties now scrambling to come out on top due to such a significant development occurring this late in the election cycle.