By: Anya Chen
On Sunday, July 21st, President Biden left his campaign for a second term after intense pressure from Democrats. “It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President,” Biden said in a message on social media. He believes leaving the race will be what’s best for the country and the Democratic party.
Now, Kamala Harris is leading the campaign, competing with other Democratic candidates to stop Trump from becoming President. Biden believed that choosing Harris as Vice President was the best decision he’s made. She represented a generation of younger leaders, something that Biden said was a major factor in his choice. Harris was also experienced in government and has been a US senator since 2017.
As always, many have opposing views on this situation. The two major sides are the Democrats and Republicans. Biden and Harris were on the sides of the Democrats, while Trump is a Republican. Many Republicans are pushing President Biden to resign as soon as possible. “If Joe Biden is not fit to run for president, he is not fit to serve as president,” House Speaker Mike Johnson (R) said.
Because Biden’s decision was so sudden, the presidential race has begun to feel unpredictable for many. Harris has 107 days to build trust with Democrats and argue her cases against Trump. Recent polls have shown that she may even be slightly ahead of Trump.
Harris stated, “I will do everything in my power to unite the Democratic Party — and unite our nation — to defeat Donald Trump and his extreme Project 2025 agenda.”
Project 2025 is an initiative aimed at transforming the federal government if a Republican president takes office in 2025. This election is said to be extremely crucial because the outcome will determine if Project 2025’s plans will be put into effect. Many believe that Trump returning to the White House will also result in power abuse.
Harris is not automatically the Democratic presidential nominee. According to the rules, the delegates at the Democratic National Convention will decide who the nominee will be. Biden’s delegates can now vote for any candidate they would like.
While Harris has a strong chance of getting another step closer to winning the election, other candidates can still enter this race and battle for the support of the delegates at the convention from Monday, August 19 to Thursday, August 22.