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By Michael Williams, CNN
9 minute read
Updated 8:29 PM EDT, Sun July 21, 2024
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President Joe Biden delivers a nationally televised address from the Oval Office of the White House on July 14, 2024 in Washington, DC.
Washington CNN —
President Joe Biden ended his reelection bid and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to succeed him on Sunday.
“It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President,” Biden wrote in a letterpostedto his official account on X. “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 said he will speak to the nation later this week in more detail.
In a follow-up post, Biden praised Harris and urged Democrats to unite behind her. “My very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my Vice President,” Biden wrote. “And it’s been the best decision I’ve made. Today I want to offer my full support and endorsem*nt for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year.”
Harris, who was informed of Biden’s decision Sunday, said in a statement that she was “honored to have the President’s endorsem*nt and my intention is to earn and win this nomination.” She is spending the day reaching out to lawmakers, outside organizations and donors, and was slated to make up to 200 calls on Sunday alone, a top Democratic source close to her told CNN.
Many prominent Democrats, including former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, quickly came out in support of Harris, although some who released statements reacting to Biden’s decision did not mention the vice president, including former President Barack Obama.
“I have extraordinary confidence that the leaders of our party will be able to create a process from which an outstanding nominee emerges,” Obama said in a statement that kept the focus on Biden.
An adviser said Obama is taking the same approach as he did in the 2020 Democratic primary, watching closely with the intent of being able to help unify the party when a nominee is chosen – whether it is Harris or someone else.
Others explicitly called for an open process to determine who should replace Biden at the top of the ticket.
Later Sunday, the Biden-Harris campaign formally amended its filings with the Federal Election Commission to rename its principal committee “Harris for President.” But Harris’ ascension to the top of the ticket isn’t a certainty. The nominee will now be determined by the delegates to the Democratic National Convention. While Biden won an overwhelming majority of the delegates during the primary process earlier this year, they are now free to choose a candidate of their choice and he cannot simply transfer them to Harris.
Biden’s departure capped off weeks of concern about the 81-year-old president’s stamina and mental capabilities and skepticism of his ability to effectively campaign against former President Donald Trump and govern the country for another four years.While Biden said he is committed to serving out the remainder of his term, his decision sparked immediate calls from Republicans for him to step down as president. Trump said Biden “is not fit to serve” in a post on Truth Social.
In a phone call with CNN after Biden’s announcement, Trump said Biden would go down “as the single worst president by far in the history of our country” and said he thought Harris would be easier to defeat than Biden.
Other leading Republicans, including House Speaker Mike Johnson, called on Biden to “resign the office immediately.”
“If Joe Biden is not fit to run for President, he is not fit to serve as President,” Johnson said in a statement.
It’s the first time a one-term US president has dropped out of a reelection run in decades and recalls President Lyndon Johnson’s decision not to seek a second fullterm in 1968 – though Biden’s decision comes months later in the campaign than Johnson’s.It’s also the latest shocking development in a highly charged political campaign that has included an attempt on Trump’s life.
But not even the attempted assassination on Trump and its tumultuous effect on the race would pause the drain of support Biden was facing among congressional Democrats who became increasingly convinced that a wipeout in November would also drown their down-ballot contests as well.
Biden’s final decision to leave the race was reached in the last 48 hours, a senior campaign adviser said, as he consulted family and top advisers by telephone. He did not have a final in-person meeting with his top campaign or White House advisers as he recovered from Covid-19 at his beach home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware.
As his decision neared its end, first lady Jill Biden remained her husband’s most ardent supporter. “Down to the last hours of the decision only he could make, she was supportive of whatever road he chose,” Jill Biden’s communications director Elizabeth Alexander said in a statement to CNN.
The president’s exit from the race sets the stage for the conclusion to a political career that has spanned a half-century, one that saw Biden enter as one of the youngest senators in US history and exit as its oldest president.
Age and questions about the president’s mental faculties had been Biden’s biggest political liability since he first ran against Trump in 2020. Biden’s disastrous performance at a June 27 CNN debate – during which the president spoke softly, had a glazed-over look and, at one point, appeared to lose his train of thought mid-sentence while his opponent delivered an animated, while mainly fact-free performance – brought those concerns to the forefront of the political conversation and ultimately doomed his reelection push.
Biden’s campaign had asked fortheJune debate in the hopes that it would force voters to tune into the race – and what Biden had said was at stake – earlier than usual. But that strategy appeared to backfire as the president solidified what had been the most persistent concern about his candidacy.
The president’s performance shocked his donors, closest allies and the 50 million Americans who saw Biden stumble throughout the 90-minute debate — themost extensive exposureto an unscripted Biden since the last round of general-election debates four years ago. It left the White House and Biden campaign in a frenzied scramble to explain away his condition – at first, blaming it on a cold, before days later saying the president had been jet lagged by his international travel that wrapped up about 12 days prior to the debate.
The president’s surrogates and campaign officials sought to soothe Democratic anxieties, hurriedly calling meetings with donors and top supporters to assure them that Biden’s performance was the product of one bad night and ask them to consider it in the context of his three-and-a-half-year presidency.
The president himself recognized how poorly the night had gone almost immediately; at a campaign rally the next day, he sought to promote an animated and energized image that had largely been absent from the debate stage.
“I don’t walk as easy as I used to,” Biden said. “I don’t speak as smoothly as I used to. I don’t debate as well as I used to. But I know what I do know: I know how to tell the truth. I know right from wrong. I know how to do this job. I know how to get things done.”
But the damage had already been done.
By the Monday after the debate, murmurs about replacing Biden on the ticket had grown into a full public conversation. The mood in the White House and at Biden’s campaign headquarters in Wilmington had turned sour. Biden, seeking to assert his control over his campaign and the presidency, delivered brief remarks that evening on the Supreme Court’s immunity decision earlier that day, asking voters to “dissent” in a rare political overture from the White House.
The next day, Rep. Lloyd Doggett of Texas became the first member of Congress from Biden’s own party to ask him to drop out. The fractures in Biden’s support have grown steadily wider every day since. By the time Biden exited the race, dozens of lawmakershad asked him to bow out.
So had major donors. Actor George Clooney, who has known Biden for years and was one of Hollywood’s biggest boosters of the president, said in a July 10 New York Times opinion piece that Democrats “are not going to win in November with this president” and called for the party to pick a new nominee.
Joe Biden speaks in Wilmington, Delaware, in November 2020. The next day, he became President-elect.
Biden carries his sons Beau, left, and Hunter while attending a Democratic convention in Delaware in 1972. At center is his first wife, Neilia, and on the left are future Gov. Sherman W. Tribbitt and his wife, Jeanne. Biden, a member of the New Castle County Council, was running for one of Delaware's US Senate seats, and he won that November at the age of 29.
Biden cuts a cake at his 30th birthday party in November 1972, shortly after winning the Senate election. A few weeks later, Neilia Biden died in a car accident while Christmas shopping. Their baby daughter, Naomi, was also killed in the wreck. The two boys were badly injured, but they survived.
Biden speaks with US President Jimmy Carter at a fundraising event in Delaware in 1978. Later that year, Biden was re-elected to the Senate. He kept getting re-elected until he resigned in 2009 and became Barack Obama's vice president.
Biden talks with Egyptian President Anwar Sadat after the signing of the Egyptian-Israel Peace Treaty in 1979.
In 1987, Biden entered the 1988 presidential race. But he dropped out three months later following reports of plagiarism and false claims about his academic record.
In February 1988, Biden had surgery to repair an aneurysm in an artery that supplies blood to the brain. Here, he sits in his office after returning to work.
Biden, as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, laughs with students as he visits a high school in Kabul, Afghanistan, in 2002.
Biden, second from left, participates in a 2007 presidential debate with other Democratic candidates. With Biden, from left, are John Edwards, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.
Biden signs his book "Promises to Keep" at the National Press Club in Washington, DC, in 2007.
Biden takes the vice president oath of office next to his second wife, Jill, in January 2009. Biden had to resign from the Senate, where he had held office since 1973.
Biden and Obama put their arms around each other after Obama's health care overhaul was passed in March 2009. It was the biggest expansion of health care guarantees in more than four decades, and it represented a significant step toward the goal of universal coverage, which had been sought by every Democratic President since Harry Truman.
Biden sits with Obama and members of Obama's national security team as they monitor the mission against Osama bin Laden in May 2011. (Editor's note: The classified document in front of Hillary Clinton was obscured by the White House.)
Biden speaks at the convention of Florida's Democratic Party in October 2011. Biden said he and Obama had made progress on fixing problems they inherited from Republicans, but he said the GOP was using obstructionist tactics to keep the administration from doing more for the economy and middle class.
Biden whistles to get someone's attention as he stands with a high school marching band in Euclid, Ohio, in November 2011.
Obama and Biden laugh together as they attend a basketball game in July 2012.
Biden speaks on the final day of the Democratic National Convention in September 2012.
Biden talks to some bikers at a Seaman, Ohio, diner in September 2012.
Biden holds a baby during a campaign event in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, in September 2012.
Biden debates US Rep. Paul Ryan, Mitt Romney's running mate, in the run-up to the 2012 election.
Biden salutes as he boards Air Force One in November 2012.
Biden makes a cameo in the TV show "Parks and Recreation" in 2012. The show's main character, played by Amy Poehler, touched Biden's face and laughed awkwardly when they met.
Biden listens to Obama speak about gun reform in December 2012. In the wake of a shooting at a Connecticut elementary school, Obama tapped Biden to lead an administration-wide effort against gun violence. But fierce resistance to new gun legislation thwarted nearly all of the administration's plans.
Biden hands a vote certificate to US Rep. Robert Brady as Congress officially counts the Electoral College votes in January 2013. Obama and Biden were elected to a second term in November 2012.
Biden and his wife, Jill, dance during an inaugural ball in January 2013.
Biden awards the Medal of Valor to William Reynolds, a battalion chief with the Virginia Beach Fire Department, during a ceremony in Washington, DC, in February 2013. Biden presented the award to public safety officers who had exhibited exceptional courage, regardless of personal safety, in the attempt to save or protect others from harm.
Biden gets ready to pay for an ice cream cone in Portland, Oregon, in October 2014. He was in Portland campaigning for US Sen. Jeff Merkley.
Biden tours a dredging barge along the Delaware River in October 2014. During his visit, the vice president discussed the importance of investing in the nation's infrastructure.
Biden talks to Stephanie Carter as her husband, Ashton Carter, delivers a speech at the White House in February 2015. Ashton Carter had just been sworn in as the country's new Secretary of Defense, but it was Biden's hands-on whisper that went viral on social media.
Biden wears his signature aviator sunglasses as he addresses graduating students at Yale University in May 2015.
Biden pauses with his family as they enter a visitation for his son, former Delaware Attorney General Beau Biden, in June 2015. Biden's eldest son died at the age of 46 after a battle with brain cancer.
Biden and Obama share a light moment at the White House, where Obama spoke at a reception honoring Hispanic Heritage Month in October 2015.
Biden points at Obama during Obama's final State of the Union address in January 2016.
Biden speaks on stage during the Academy Awards in February 2016. Before introducing Lady Gaga's performance of "Til It Happens to You," Biden encouraged Americans to take action against sexual assault on college campuses. "Let's change the culture," Biden said. "We must, and we can."
Biden waves to the crowd before speaking at the Democratic National Convention in July 2016.
Biden surprises Obama on his birthday in August 2016.
Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton greets Biden on an airport tarmac in Avoca, Pennsylvania, in August 2016. Watch CNN's Jeanne Moos on the "endless embrace."
Biden greets Ruth Bonner, a 99-year-old daughter of a young slave who escaped to freedom, as he and his wife attend the September 2016 opening of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.
Biden shakes hands with his successor, Mike Pence, after they had lunch in Washington, DC, in November 2016.
Biden wipes away tears as Obama surprises him with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in January 2017. "For your faith in your fellow Americans, for your love of country and for your lifetime of service that will endure through the generations, I'd like to ask the military aide to join us on stage," Obama said in the ceremony. "For my final time as President, I am pleased to award our nation's highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom."
Biden poses for a photo with a dog named Biden as he greets a crowd on Capitol Hill in March 2017.
Biden speaks at a fundraising dinner for New Hampshire Democrats in April 2017. Biden, who advisers said was nowhere near making a decision on whether to run for president in 2020, addressed the question head-on. "Guys, I'm not running!" he said with a smile, as the audience in the hotel ballroom booed in response.
Biden tosses his jacket off stage as he begins to speak at a rally in Pittsburgh in April 2019. Days earlier, he announced that he would be running for president for a third time.
Biden is confronted by US Sen. Kamala Harris during the first Democratic debates in June 2019. Harris went after Biden over his early-career opposition to federally mandated busing. "I did not oppose busing in America," Biden told Harris. "What I opposed is busing ordered by the Department of Education."
Biden takes a selfie with supporters in Detroit after CNN's Democratic debates in July 2019.
Biden is questioned about his son Hunter during a campaign stop in New Hampton, Iowa, in December 2019. Biden grew visibly frustrated with the man, calling him a "damn liar" after the man accused Biden of sending his son to Ukraine "to get a job and work for a gas company, that he had no experience with gas, nothing." Hunter Biden served on the board of a Ukrainian gas company while his father was vice president. He said recently he used "poor judgment" in serving on the board of the company while his father was pushing anti-corruption measures in Ukraine on behalf of the US government, but he added that he didn't do anything improper. There is no evidence of wrongdoing by either Joe or Hunter Biden.
Biden speaks with Jacquelyn Brittany, a security guard at The New York Times, in December 2019. Brittany was escorting Biden to a Times editorial board meeting when she said: "I love you. I do. You're like my favorite." The exchange was aired as part of the Times' TV series "The Weekly," and was circulated on social media. In August 2020, Brittany gave the first speech officially nominating Biden for president at the Democratic National Convention. "I take powerful people up on my elevator all the time," Brittany said. "When they get off, they go to their important meetings. Me, I just head back to the lobby. But in the short time I spent with Joe Biden, I could tell he really saw me. That he actually cared, that my life meant something to him. And I knew even when he went into his important meeting, he'd take my story in there with him." Biden responded on Twitter: "Jacquelyn: Your nomination means the world to me. Thank you — and I hope you know: we love you back."
Biden speaks at a caucus-night rally in Des Moines, Iowa, in February 2020. He finished a disappointing fourth.
Biden rallied from early setbacks in Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada, winning the South Carolina primary in February 2020. "Just days ago, the press and pundits had declared this candidacy dead," Biden said in his speech to supporters. "Because of you, the heart of the Democratic Party, we just won and we won big because of you. We are very much alive."
Biden puts his hands on the shoulders of Pete Buttigieg as Buttigieg endorses him for president in March 2020. Buttigieg, the former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, had just dropped out of the Democratic race.
Biden's wife, Jill, blocks a protester who charged the stage during his Super Tuesday speech in Los Angeles in March 2020. The protester was holding a sign that said "Let dairy die."
Biden and US Sen. Kamala Harris greet each other at a Detroit high school as they attend a "Get Out the Vote" event in March 2020. Harris had dropped out of the presidential race a few months earlier.
Biden has a testy exchange about gun rights as he tours a Fiat Chrysler assembly plant in Detroit in March 2020. A man confronted Biden and accused the former vice president of trying to "take away our guns." Biden responded, "You're full of s***" and tried to clarify his policies, saying he supports the Second Amendment.
Biden greets US Sen. Bernie Sanders with an elbow bump before the start of their one-on-one debate in Washington, DC, in March 2020. The two Democrats went with an elbow bump instead of a handshake because of the coronavirus pandemic. Sanders ended his presidential campaign the following month, clearing Biden's path to the Democratic nomination.
In May 2020, Biden denied a former aide's claims that he sexually assaulted her 27 years ago. "This never happened," Biden said of Tara Reade's allegation. In an interview with MSNBC, Biden said he did not know why Reade was now making the allegation.
On Memorial Day, the Bidens lay a wreath at the Veterans Memorial Park in New Castle, Delaware. In a CNN interview, Biden called President Donald Trump "an absolute fool" for sharing a tweet that mocked him for wearing a mask.
Biden touches his face while speaking at a church in Wilmington, Delaware, in June 2020. As he spoke with African-American leaders, Biden pledged to take steps to combat institutional racism and re-establish a police oversight body at the Justice Department.
People are socially distanced from one another as Biden speaks in Darby, Pennsylvania, in June 2020.
Biden holds handwritten notes that reference US Sen. Kamala Harris in July 2020. The talking points fueled fresh speculation about Harris' standing as a possible running mate.
Biden calls Harris from his Delaware home to inform her that she was his choice for vice president.
Biden and Harris walk out for their first campaign event as a presidential ticket.
Biden accepts the Democratic Party's presidential nomination during a speech at the Democratic National Convention. "This campaign isn't just about winning votes," Biden said. "It is about winning the heart and, yes, the soul of America."
Biden joins hands with Harris after the Democratic National Convention in August 2020. They are joined on stage by Biden's wife, Jill, and Harris' husband, Douglas Emhoff.
Biden speaks to supporters from a distance after meeting with labor leaders in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, in September 2020. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, Biden has taken a careful approach to campaigning.
Biden greets Vice President Mike Pence as they attend a ceremony at the 9/11 Memorial in New York City.
Biden speaks to reporters before boarding his campaign plane in Duluth, Minnesota, in September 2020.
People sitting in social-distancing circles are reflected in Biden's sunglasses as he speaks in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Biden takes part in the first presidential debate in September 2020. At center is moderator Chris Wallace, who had his hands full as the debate often devolved into shouting, rancor and cross talk that sometimes made it impossible to follow what either candidate was talking about.
Biden is reminded by his wife, Jill, to maintain proper social distancing as he speaks to reporters at an airport in Miami in October 2020.
Biden sits across from ABC News' George Stephanopoulos before the start of his town-hall event in Philadelphia in October 2020. Biden and Trump held separate town halls instead of debating each other in a town-hall format. The schedule change came about after Trump was diagnosed with the coronavirus. The Commission on Presidential Debates proposed a virtual debate, but Trump refused to take part and Biden went ahead with plans for his own town hall. Trump's campaign later arranged its own town hall — on a different network, during the same hour.
Biden speaks during his debate with Trump in October 2020. Because their first debate quickly descended into a glorified shouting match, the Commission on Presidential Debates instituted an unprecedented change this time around: The candidates had their microphones cut off while their opponent responded to the first question of each of the debate's six segments.
Biden delivers remarks in the rain during a drive-in rally in Tampa, Florida, in October 2020.
Biden is joined by his running mate, US Sen. Kamala Harris, after Election Day came and went without a winner. "After a long night of counting, it's clear that we are winning enough states to reach 270 electoral votes needed to win the presidency," Biden told supporters at a drive-in rally in Wilmington, Delaware. "I'm not here to declare that we have won. But I am here to report when the count is finished, we believe we will be the winners."
Biden's wife, Jill, tweeted this photo after her husband was projected as the winner of the presidential race. "He will be a President for all of our families," she said.
Biden gives his first speech as president-elect, addressing supporters at a drive-in event in Wilmington, Delaware. "Tonight the whole world is watching America, and I believe that at our best, America is a beacon for the globe," Biden said in his speech. "We will lead not only by the example of our power, but by the power of our example."
Biden introduces the men and women he was nominating to join his national security and foreign policy team. "It's a team that will keep our country and our people safe and secure," Biden said. "And it's a team that reflects the fact that America is back, ready to lead the world, not retreat from it."
Biden, center, waves after speaking at a campaign rally in Atlanta for US Senate candidates Raphael Warnock, second from left, and Jon Ossoff, second from right, in December 2020. Both candidates won their runoff races, giving Democrats control of the Senate.
Biden receives a Covid-19 vaccination in Newark, Delaware, in December 2020.
Biden speaks in Wilmington, Delaware, after the US Capitol was breached in January 2021. Biden was planning to deliver a speech on the economy, but he scrapped his speech and instead addressed the chaos and violence in Washington, DC. He said the rioting amounted to an "unprecedented assault" on US democracy. "This is not dissent. It's disorder. It's chaos," he said. "It borders on sedition, and it must end now."
Biden tears up in New Castle, Delaware, as he speaks about his late son Beau before heading to Washington, DC, for his inauguration. Biden said he was proud to be delivering his send-off remarks from the National Guard Center in New Castle, which is named after Beau Biden. "I only have one regret: that he's not here, because we should be introducing him as president," Biden said.
Biden and his wife, Jill, walk out for his inauguration in January 2021.
Biden is sworn in as president by Chief Justice John Roberts as his wife holds the Bible. Biden's children Ashley and Hunter are on the right. "Today, on this January day, my whole soul is in this: bringing America together, uniting our people, uniting our nation," Biden said in his inaugural address.
Biden signs three documents after his swearing-in ceremony: his inauguration day proclamation, his nominations for the Cabinet and his nominations for sub-Cabinet positions.
Biden arrives at the White House for the first time as president.
Biden poses with his dogs, Champ and Major, in the Oval Office in February 2021. The German shepherds marked a return to a longstanding tradition of Presidents and their families bringing their pets with them to the White House. Champ died in June 2021 at the age of 13.
Biden speaks from the White House Treaty Room in April 2021 as he announced his decision to withdraw American troops from Afghanistan before September 11. "I am now the fourth American president to preside over an American troop presence in Afghanistan. Two Republicans. Two Democrats," Biden said. "I will not pass this responsibility to a fifth."
Biden addresses a joint session of Congress in April 2021. Because of Covid-19 restrictions, only a limited number of lawmakers were in the House chamber. Biden's speech focused on the administration's accomplishments thus far and unveiled key components of his next legislative push.
The Bidens met with former President Jimmy Carter and former first lady Rosalynn Carter at the Carters' home in Plains, Georgia, in April 2021. The photo grabbed people's attention on social media because of what appeared to be a significant size difference between the two couples. While many experts theorized that it was the result of a wide-angle lens, Adam Schultz, the chief official White House photographer, declined to explain when reached by The New York Times.
A security officer asks the media to step back at the start of a summit between Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin in June 2021. Seated from left are US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Biden, Putin and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. The summit, held in Geneva, Switzerland, was the first meeting of Biden and Putin since Biden was elected President.
The Bidens visit a memorial near the partially collapsed building in Surfside, Florida, in July 2021. Biden traveled to Surfside to console families still waiting on news of their loved ones. Their meetings were closed to the press.
Biden pauses as he listens to a question about a suicide bombing in Afghanistan that killed Afghan civilians and US service members in August 2021. The terror group ISIS-K, which rivals the Taliban in Afghanistan, claimed responsibility for the bombing. "We will not forgive. We will not forget. We will hunt you down and make you pay," he said.
Biden and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi depart following a meeting with the House Democratic Caucus in October 2021. Biden was at the Capitol to lay out the framework of his economic plan and make his case for it.
Biden gives Pope Francis a challenge coin during his trip to the Vatican in October 2021. Between them is Italian translator Elisabetta Savigni Ullmann. It was the fourth meeting between Francis and Biden, but their first since Biden became President. Biden, a devout lifelong Catholic, met with the Pope for 90 minutes and said he discussed "a lot of personal things" with the pontiff.
Biden signs a bipartisan infrastructure bill into law during a White House ceremony in November 2021. The $1.2 trillion legislation focuses on infrastructure such as roads and bridges.
Biden speaks to the press as he arrives at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland in July 2022. The following morning, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the President had tested positive for Covid-19.
President Joe Biden speaks from the Capitol in January 2022 to mark the one-year anniversary of the Capitol riot. In his remarks, Biden forcefully called out former President Donald Trump for attempting to undo American democracy. "For the first time in our history, a president had not just lost an election. He tried to prevent the peaceful transfer of power as a violent mob reached the Capitol," Biden said. "But they failed. They failed. And on this day of remembrance, we must make sure that such an attack never, never happens again."
Biden addresses the National League of Cities' Congressional City Conference in March 2022.
Biden holds hands with Ketanji Brown Jackson as the Senate votes on her nomination to the US Supreme Court in April 2022. Jackson was confirmed and made history as the first Black woman on the court.
Biden hands West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin the pen used to sign the Inflation Reduction Act at the White House in August 2022. Also pictured from left are Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, House Majority Whip Rep. Jim Clyburn, New Jersey Rep. Frank Pallone and Florida Rep. Kathy Castor.
Biden and former President Barack Obama attend a campaign event for Democratic senatorial candidate John Fetterman and Democratic nominee for Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro in November 2022. Fetterman went on to defeat opponent Mehmet Oz in one of the most closely-watched races of the midterms.
The Bidens attend the wedding of their oldest granddaughter, Naomi Biden Neal, and Peter Neal at the White House in November 2022. See the history of White House weddings.
Biden greets Border Patrol agents near the Mexican border in El Paso, Texas, in January 2023. He was making his first visit to the southern border as president.
US Sen. Raphael Warnock, the pastor at Ebenezer Baptist Church, greets Biden during a worship service in Atlanta in January 2023. It was on the eve of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. King was co-pastor of the church from 1960 until his assassination in 1968. Biden became the first sitting president to deliver a Sunday sermon from the historic church.
Biden walks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during a surprise visit to Kyiv, Ukraine, in February 2023.
Biden gestures during the Democratic National Committee's winter meeting in Philadelphia in February 2023.
Biden speaks while children dressed as Secret Service agents "guard" the stage in Washington, DC, in April 2023. It was national Take Your Child to Work Day.
Biden, seen through a window, delivers his first-ever address from the White House Oval Office in June 2023. He declared bipartisanship alive and well as he pointed to the compromise measure that raised the federal borrowing limit and avoided a catastrophic default.
Biden reviews royal guards in front of Britain's King Charles III during a welcoming ceremony in Windsor, England, in July 2023. It was Biden's second trip to Windsor Castle since taking office.
Biden and the first lady sit under an umbrella at Rehoboth Beach in Delaware in August 2023.
Shawn Fain, president of the United Auto Workers, speaks as Biden, center, joins striking union members on the picket line in Belleville, Michigan, in September 2023. Biden made history by being the first sitting president to join a picket line.
Biden, center right, is greeted by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after arriving at the Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv, Israel, in October 2023. Biden capped his trip by sending an emphatic message of support to Israel, promising new aid to Netanyahu's government as it prepared fresh action against Hamas.
Biden speaks at a campaign event in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, in January 2024.
Biden delivers the annual State of the Union address before a joint session of Congress in March 2024. It was a high-stakes moment as he looked to convince voters to give him a second term in the White House.
Harris embraces Biden after a speech in Raleigh, North Carolina, in March 2024. The rare joint appearance highlighted the emphasis that the duo will place on health care, which they believe is a winning issue for them ahead of November's election.
Biden puts on a Kansas City Chiefs football helmet as he welcomes the Super Bowl champions to the White House in May 2024.
Biden embraces his son Hunter on a tarmac in Wilmington, Delaware, in June 2024. A federal jury convicted Hunter Biden on all three federal felony gun charges he faced, concluding that he violated laws meant to prevent drug addicts from owning firearms.
Biden and other world leaders watch a parachute drop demonstration during the first day of the G7 summit in Bari, Italy, in June 2024.
Biden appeared to struggle with his delivery at multiple points of a CNN presidential debate with Trump in June 2024. It was the first time in history that a sitting US president faced a former president in a debate. Biden's shaky debate performance set off alarm bells among top Democrats, leaving some to openly question whether Biden could stay atop of the Democratic ticket.
In July 2024, the president had back-to-back slip-ups on the last day of the NATO summit in Washington, referring to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, right, as "President Putin" before correcting himself at one event and then referring to Harris as "Vice President Trump" in a news conference.
Biden addresses the nation from the Roosevelt Room of the White House in July 2024. A day after the attempted assassination of former President Trump, Biden called on the country to "lower the temperature in our politics" in a speech from the Oval Office later that day.
Biden speaks to the nation from the Oval Office in July 2024 on his decision to step aside from the 2024 presidential race, calling it a matter of saving democracy. "I revere this office. But I love my country more," he said.
In pictures: President Joe Biden
Biden was initially defiant that he would remain in the race. But as the defections in his base of support continued, and leading Democrats in Congress continued to have difficult conversations with the president about his odds against Trump and the damaging effect he might have on down-ballot Democrats in competitive races, Biden opened himself up more to the idea of dropping out of the race.
In an interview with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos on July 5, Biden laughed off questions about his political future and said only the “Lord Almighty” could convince him to drop from the race.
Days later, Stephanopoulos candidly told a passerby that he also didn’t think Biden could serve another four years.
Biden told reporters at a NATO news conference he would drop out if polls showed he could not win. About a week later, he said he would reevaluate whether to stay in if he had “some medical condition that emerged” and doctors told him that would be an issue. The next day, the White House announced that Biden had Covid-19.
The attempt on Trump’s life on July 13 briefly stemmed the flow of congressional Democrats calling for Biden to drop out and pulled the national attention away from his faltering presidential campaign. But the reprieve didn’t last long. California Rep. Adam Schiff on July 17 became the first House Democrat to call on Biden to step down since the assassination attempt, and more followed in the ensuing days.
Biden’s evolution on his future as the party’s nominee tracked closely with efforts among his biggest allies to convince him the path to victory was narrow. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told Biden weeks after his debate that polls showed he could not win.
A senior Democratic adviser told CNN the president was becoming “receptive” to conversations about him stepping aside: “He’s gone from saying, ‘Kamala can’t win,’ to ‘Do you think Kamala can win?”
Those conversation accelerated as Biden isolated at his beach home with Covid over the last few days. Saturday night, Biden asked two of his closest advisers to start drafting the letter, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Many rank-and-file staff found out about Biden’s decision when the post came out.
CNN’s Jeff Zeleny, Betsy Klein, Ethan Cohen, Abby Phillip and Phil Mattingly contributed to this report.
This story and headline have been updated with additional developments.
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