President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris join hands after they watched the Fourth of July fireworks from the White House balcony in Washington, Thursday, July 4, 2024, during a Fourth of July celebration and barbecue for active-duty military service members and their families on the South Lawn. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
“Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year,” Biden said. “Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump. Let’s do this.”
President Joe Biden on Sunday announced he will end his bid for a second term in the White House and quickly endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to replace him atop the Democratic ticket, capping off weeks of turmoil and speculation over his candidacy.
Despite what has largely been seen as a very productive presidency, Biden, 81, has also long faced questions about his age, and those concerns boiled over after last month’s first presidential debate, in which Biden struggled to articulate his thoughts and had several verbal miscues.
The president’s debate performance prompted a wave of voters, elected Democrats, activists, and donors to call on him to step aside as the party’s presidential nominee.
Biden ultimately decided to step aside and endorse Harris, he said in a post to X, because he believes she offers the best possible chance of defeating Donald Trump in November.
“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.”
A short time later, Biden made a second post, officially endorsing Harris.
“My very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my Vice President. And it’s been the best decision I’ve made,” Biden said. “Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year. Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump. Let’s do this.”
By passing the torch to Harris, Biden made clear that he wants the party to avoid any further chaos and disputes. Most analysts think it’s highly unlikely any other major Democrat would challenge Harris and seek the nomination in some sort of contested convention in August.
Shortly after Biden made his announcement, Harris released a statement praising the president for his “extraordinary leadership” and for “his decades of service to our country.” She also thanked him for his endorsement and made clear she would work to unite the party together to take on Trump in November.
“I am honored to have the President’s endorsement and my intention is to earn and win this nomination. Over the past year, I have traveled across the country, talking with Americans about the clear choice in this momentous election. And that is what I will continue to do in the days and weeks ahead,” Harris said. “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.”
Harris, who is nearly 20 years younger than Trump, could help boost the Democratic ticket’s popularity among young voters, who have consistently expressed frustration with the Biden-Trump matchup. She has been one of the Biden administration’s strongest voices on issues that matter to younger voters, including reproductive rights, gun violence, and climate change.
If elected, Harris would make history as the first woman, first Black woman, and first south Asian American person to become president.
Harris’ ascension to the top of the ticket caps a remarkable journey for the California-born daughter of immigrants.
Her first experience as a public servant was as a local prosecutor, a profession she says she pursued because one of her best friends was sexually abused in high school—a horrific reality that she said pushed her to dedicate her life to protecting women and children from violence. As a prosecutor, she did just that, focusing on domestic violence perpetrators, child abusers, and sex traffickers.
During her time as California Attorney General from 2011 to 2017, Harris also worked to defend reproductive rights, took on for-profit colleges, sued multiple fossil fuel and gas companies, launched an investigation into Exxon Mobil over allegations that the company misled the public about the risks of climate change, and went after Mexican drug cartels.
As a senator from 2017 to early 2021, Harris championed efforts to address extreme heat and the consequences of climate change, introduced legislation to advance women’s health research, sponsored bills to address housing issues and homelessness, worked to improve Black maternal health, and was a strong supporter of pandemic-era assistance programs for families and businesses.
Since becoming vice president in 2021, Harris has made curbing gun violence a priority. She has played a key role in implementing The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, has been billed as the most significant gun safety law in nearly 30 years, and also oversees the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention.
She also worked with Biden as he signed into law new legislation like the American Rescue Plan and the Inflation Reduction Act which have lowered healthcare costs, invested in childcare and housing, and advanced efforts to fight climate change.
In the coming days and weeks, as she campaigns as a presidential nominee instead of a vice presidential one, it’s this record of accomplishments she’s likely to lean on as she seeks to paint a contrast with Trump.
