Isolating at a beach house in Delaware, President Joe Biden stunned his aides and the political world by announcing his withdrawal from the 2024 presidential race. His senior White House and campaign staff had spent the past week insisting he planned to stay in the race despite growing calls within the Democratic Party for him to step aside.
As recently as Saturday, Biden’s aides were finalizing a campaign schedule for his return to the White House. Recovering from COVID-19 at his beach house, Biden remained adamant about his re-election campaign but was frustrated by a coordinated effort among some Democrats to pressure him to exit, which began to spill into public view.
However, by Sunday morning, Biden had changed his mind. Sources, who spoke anonymously, detailed how the day unfolded. On Saturday evening, Biden started contemplating withdrawal, one of the toughest decisions of his 50-year political career. He convened a small circle of aides, including close adviser Steve Richetti, chief strategist Mike Donilon, deputy chief of staff Annie Tomasini, and Anthony Bernal, chief of staff to First Lady Jill Biden.
Richetti, who has been with Biden since his Senate days, drove to the beach house on Friday. Donilon, another key adviser, joined on Saturday. Together, they reviewed new polling data and discussed Biden’s chances against Donald Trump in the current political climate. Faced with the new data and anticipating more public defections within the party, Biden had a decision to make.
By Sunday morning, Biden decided to withdraw. He separately informed chief of staff Jeff Zients, campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon, and Vice-President Kamala Harris. At 1:45 PM EDT (5:45 PM GMT), Biden held a video call with his most senior White House and campaign staff, including communications strategist Anita Dunn. One minute later, he released a public statement that shocked the American political landscape and upended the 2024 election.
“He said he had been reflecting on it over the past couple of days,” a senior White House official told the BBC. “It was a closely-held decision.” Though Biden did not mention Harris in his initial statement, he tweeted his endorsement for her about half an hour later. The two spoke multiple times throughout the day leading up to the announcement, according to sources.
First Lady Jill Biden, considered a decisive influence in Biden’s decision, expressed her support for his withdrawal. “Down to the last hours of the decision only he could make, she was supportive of whatever road he chose,” said Elizabeth Alexander, Jill Biden’s communications director. “She’s his biggest believer, champion, and always on his side, in that trusted way only a spouse of almost 50 years can be.”
Many in the White House and campaign were not informed of Biden’s plans in advance, learning from the social media post. Zients confirmed the announcement to White House officials and thanked them for their hard work, also leading a call with the president’s cabinet secretaries. Biden spoke to several congressional Democrats, governors, and supporters, planning to continue making calls on Sunday night and Monday.
Kamala Harris, now aiming to secure the presidential nomination, spent Sunday afternoon rallying support from lawmakers, including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, party officials, and governors. Though she has Biden’s and top Democrats’ backing, her nomination is not guaranteed until delegates vote at the Democratic National Convention in August. Notably, former President Barack Obama has not explicitly endorsed her, while Bill and Hillary Clinton have shown their support.
During a campaign call on Sunday afternoon, top officials reaffirmed their commitment to supporting Harris. “All of you, all of us, wherever we come from, are here for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris and to defeat Donald Trump. And while today is a big day of transition, nothing changes with why you got here and what we’re all here to do,” said O’Malley Dillon, according to a source.
“But the path forward is a path that is for all of us to do this together.”
