US President Joe Biden has dropped out of the November 2024 presidential election.
Biden, who has been under pressure to quit following his dismal outing in the presidential debate against his Republican opponent Donald Trump, announced on Sunday he would not seek for a second term. The President who had been sidelined by Covid 19 for some days now said in a statement: 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.
“For now, let me express my deepest gratitude to all those who have worked so hard to see me reelected,”
“I want to thank Vice President Kamala Harris for being an extraordinary partner in all this work. And let me express my heartfelt appreciation to the American people for the faith and trust you have placed in me.
“I believe today what I always have: that there is nothing America can’t do when we do it tougher. We just have to remember we are the United States of America.”
Before now Biden, 81, had defied calls for him to quit by members of his own party and donors saying he was best placed to defeat Mr. Trump in the upcoming election despite trailing his Republican counterpart in national and swing states polling.
Attention will now turn to who will succeed him, with the selection likely to happen at the Democratic National Convention in August.
California Governor Gavin Newsom described Biden as a history making President.
“President Biden has been an extraordinary, history-making president — a leader who has fought hard for working people and delivered astonishing results for all Americans,” he wrote on X.
“He will go down in history as one of the most impactful and selfless presidents.”
Biden’s granddaughter Naomi calls him ‘the most effective president of our lifetime’
Biden’s eldest granddaughter Naomi, the daughter of Hunter Biden, said she’s “nothing but proud” of her grandfather after he announced his decision to step down from the 2024 presidential race.
“I’m nothing but proud today of my Pop, our President, Joe Biden, who has served our country with every bit of his soul and with unmatched distinction,” she wrote on X. “Not only has he been — and will continue to be — the most effective president of our lifetime, but he has likely already cemented himself as the most effective and impactful public servant in our nation’s history.”
She continued, “Our world is better today in so many ways thanks to him. To the Americans who have always had his back, keep the faith. He will always have ours.”
