(NEXSTAR) Joe Biden has officially withdrawn from the 2024 presidential race, becoming one of the few presidents to end his reelection campaign.
“Serving as your President has been the honor of my life. While I intended to seek reelection, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and our country to step aside for the remainder of my term and focus on fulfilling the duties of my presidency,” Biden said in the letter posted to social media, confirming speculation that has been growing since his debate with former President Donald Trump in June.
Biden did not endorse Vice President Kamala Harris in the letter, but later voiced his support for her in a separate post to X.
So does that make Harris the new Democratic candidate? Not necessarily.
Strictly speaking, Biden was not the party’s official nominee. Coming in August Biden was expected to top the list of candidates after about 3,900 delegates pledged to vote for him during a virtual roll call ahead of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
Harris is the only candidate with direct access to Biden’s campaign funds under federal campaign finance rules and is the front-runner to win the party’s nomination at the Democratic National Convention.
However, she is not yet the party’s official candidate.
The Democrats are technically starting with an open convention right now.
What is an Open Convention?
During the open conventionDelegates can vote for any candidate. The candidate who receives a simple majority becomes the new Democratic candidate. If no candidate receives a simple majority, “super delegates” also vote, who can vote for the candidate of their choice.
Party rules require delegates to essentially vote for the candidate chosen by the voters, with superdelegates and pledged delegates continuing to vote until a candidate receives a majority.
Biden cannot give up delegates to Harris or any other candidate.
Will anyone challenge Harris?
It is unclear whether anyone will challenge Harris for the nomination, or whether Democrats will push for open conventions or quicker primaries that would allow candidates to make their case to the public before the Democratic National Convention begins in Chicago on August 19.
Instead, Harris’ immediate burden falls on solidifying the support of roughly 4,000 delegates from states, territories and the District of Columbia, as well as more than 700 House members. So-called super delegates This includes party leaders, certain elected officials, and former presidents and vice presidents.
in A statement released on SundayHarris said she was “honored to have the president’s endorsement” but added that she intended to “seek and win this nomination.”
Even before Biden announced his decision, names such as California Governor Gavin Newsom and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer had been floated as possible candidates.
As The Hill previously reported, several lawmakers have publicly pledged to support Harris as their nominee if Biden were to drop out, and there would likely be political backlash if the party were to skip its first female vice president and first woman of color to field a different candidate.
Asked who they would support if Biden were to leave office, about 79% of Democrats said they would support Harris taking the top spot, according to a poll released Thursday.
What just happened?
“This is unprecedented, but the work that must now be done is clear,” Democratic National Committee Chairman Jaime Harrison said after President Joe Biden announced he was not seeking reelection.
“Over the next few days, the party will engage in a transparent and orderly process to move forward” and field “a candidate who can defeat Donald Trump in November,” Harrison said in a statement.
“This process will be governed by the party’s established rules and procedures,” Harrison added. “Our representatives are prepared to take seriously their responsibility to swiftly deliver a nominee to the American people.”
“The American people will hear from the Democratic Party soon about next steps in the nomination process and the path forward,” his statement added.
Alix Maltishchut and Sarah Phillips and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
