US President Joe Biden has heeded calls to withdraw his re-election bid, thrusting this year’s already high-wire race for the White House into an uncertain territory.
The announcement on Sunday by the oldest sitting president in the United States’ history came amid mounting pressure from his fellow Democrats, with more than 30 Congress members publicly pushing for his exit.
In a post on X, Biden, 81, said he will remain in his role as president and commander-in-chief until his term ends in January 2025 and will address the nation this week.
“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 wrote.
His initial statement had not included an endorsement of Kamala Harris, but he followed up a few minutes later with an expression of support.
Harris, 59, would become the first Black woman to do run at the top of a major-party ticket in the country’s history.
The Democratic backlash against Biden came after he delivered an unsteady performance at the first presidential debate of the 2024 election season as he lost his train of thought and struggled to articulate basic talking points.