President Biden on Sunday endorsed Vice President Harris to become the Democratic Party’s nominee as he announced he would not seek reelection.
“My fellow Democrats, I have decided not to accept the nomination and to focus all my energies on my duties as President for the remainder of my term,” he posted on the social platform X. “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.”
“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,” he added.
Biden did not initially endorse Harris in a letter he posted announcing he was ending his 2024 candidacy, spurring instant speculation about what it meant for the future of the party. But his decision to back his vice president gives Harris a clear edge to replace Biden atop the ticket in November.
Harris has several clear advantages: She was on the ticket that won in 2020 and the one that received millions of votes in primaries this year; she has been campaigning for months in swing states; she has been the face of the campaign’s push around abortion access; and she is the only other candidate who could access the war financial chest the Biden-Harris campaign has amassed.
Several lawmakers had publicly said they would support Harris as the nominee if Biden were to step aside. And there would likely be political backlash if the party skipped over the first woman and first woman of color elected vice president in favor of another candidate.
It’s unclear if anyone will challenge Harris for the nomination, or if Democrats will push for an open convention or a rapid primary where candidates can make their case to the public before the Democratic National Convention begins Aug. 19 in Chicago.
Harris is not without her flaws. Her 2020 presidential campaign flopped after significant hype, beset by internal problems and an inability to develop a winning message. Harris dropped out before the Iowa caucuses in 2020.
Republicans have already previewed a line of attack they will use against Harris, labeling her the “border czar” over her work on addressing root causes of migration from Central America. And they will aggressively tie her to issues like inflation that have hamstrung the Biden administration for months.
Updated 2:41 p.m.
