President Biden announced his withdrawal from the 2024 presidential election in a letter posted to X on July 21.
“It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President,” Biden wrote in the letter. “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.”
The last time an incumbent president declined to seek re-election was Lyndon B. Johnson in March 1968.
This announcement comes after pressure from fellow Democrats calling for Biden to step down, including Congressman Adam Schiff who released a statement from his office July 17 asking President Biden to step down.
“Our nation is at a crossroads,” Schiff stated. “A second Trump presidency will undermine the very foundation of our democracy, and I have serious concerns about whether the President can defeat Donald Trump in November."
Biden’s withdrawal announcement also follows the president testing positive for COVID-19 on July 17.
Biden later endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee on X.
“Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year," Biden stated. "Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump. Let’s do this."
Now that Biden has stepped aside in the presidential election there are political figures, such as Republican Vice President nominee J.D. Vance, who are calling for him to resign as president.
“Everyone calling on Joe Biden to ‘stop running’ without also calling on him to resign the presidency is engaged in an absurd level of cynicism,” Vance said in a post on X on July 20. “If you can’t run, you can’t serve. He should resign now.”
With Biden dropping out of the presidential election 29 days away from the Democratic National Convention, this is the first time either party has gone into a convention without a nominee since 1968.