Biden withdraws, endorses Harris for Democratic candidate

Biden officially endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic Party nominee for the POTUS elections scheduled to be held on November 5 this year.

| Updated: 22 July, 2024 5:44 pm IST
Biden opts out of Presidential race; endorses VP Kamala Harris

NEW DELHI: US President Joe Biden on Sunday announced his exit from the US Presidential bid, putting an end to numerous speculations regarding his contestation against former President Donald Trump. Biden officially endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic Party nominee for the POTUS elections scheduled to be held on November 5 this year.

The declaration came as not-so-shocking news after several key leaders from within the Democratic Party urged Biden to quit the elections following his abysmal performance against Trump in a televised debate in June this year. The US President had been receiving a lot of flak for re-contesting elections this year even as concerns about his health and age surfaced time and again.

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In a letter addressed to his “fellow Americans”, Biden wrote, “It has been the greatest honour of my life to serve as your President. And while I have intended 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.” The letter further mentioned the President addressing the nation later this week.

The dramatic turn of events has pushed the Democratic Party into a quandary ahead of the highly anticipated US elections later this year. Republican candidate former President Donald Trump reacted with a stream of posts on his Truth Social network, claiming that since Biden is not “fit to run” for president, he is also not “fit to serve.”

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Shortly after the announcement, Biden offered his “full support and endorsement” for Kamala Harris, with his campaign filing an official notice to change its name to “Harris for President.” With this striking decision, Harris becomes the first ever woman of colour to run for the prestigious office of the US President, while 78-year-old Trump clinches the tag for the oldest presidential nominee in US history.

Hours after the historic proclamation, Harris was quoted saying, “I am honoured to have the President’s endorsement and I intend to earn and win this nomination. 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”.

Several Democratic veterans, particularly Hillary and Bill Clinton, Senator Elizabeth Warren, and Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC) also backed Harris’ nomination. The Democrats will now jostle to confirm a new candidate at their party convention in Chicago on August 19.

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