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Live: Biden backs VP Kamala Harris as Democratic nominee after dropping out of race
US President Joe Biden said Sunday he was endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee for the 2024 election after announcing he was dropping of the race for the White House. Biden ended his bid for reelection following a disastrous debate with Donald Trump that raised doubts about his fitness for office just four months before the election. Follow our liveblog for all the latest developments.
Issued on: 21/07/2024 – 20:21
Modified: 21/07/2024 – 20:39
1 min
US President Joe Biden shakes hands with US Vice President Kamala Harris.
US President Joe Biden shakes hands with US Vice President Kamala Harris. Biden endorsed Harris as the Democratic nominee for the 2024 presidential election after announcing he was pulling out of the race. © Brendan Smialowski, AFP
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FRANCE 24
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FRANCE 24
Summary:
US President Joe Biden announced Sunday that he was dropping out of his reelection battle with Donald Trump. The octogenarian president spent more than three weeks resisting calls to step down following a shaky performance in a debate against Trump on June 27.
Biden said Sunday he was endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee for the 2024 election, saying he was offering Harris his “full support”.
Biden said he would “speak to the nation later this week in more detail” about his decision.
LIVE
25 minutes ago
Democrats are rallying around Harris as she vows to ‘earn and win’ party nomination for president
Democrats quickly rallied around Vice President Kamala Harris as their likely presidential nominee Sunday after President Joe Biden ‘s ground-shaking decision to bow out of the 2024 race, a volatile fast-moving political situation just months before the November election.
Shortly after Biden stepped aside he firmly endorsed Harris, who would make history as the nation’s first Black and South Asian woman to become a major party’s presidential nominee.
“My intention is to earn and win this nomination,” Harris declared in a statement.
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28 minutes ago
Seiu, the second largest labor union in the United States, is backing VP Harris
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36 minutes ago
Harris gets $27.5 million in small donor contribution within five hours
The Democratic fundraising group ActBlue reported that Harris received $27.5 million in small-donor contributions over the course of just five hours.
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an hour ago
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez endorses Harris
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a prominent figure in the Democratic party has announced her support for Kamala Harris. She previously urged Democrats to reconsider their efforts to replace President Biden as their nominee.
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an hour ago
California governor, seen as possible rival, endorses Harris
California Governor Gavin Newsom on Sunday endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to lead the Democratic ticket, removing a key possible rival to the nomination after Joe Biden’s shock exit from the White House race.
“With our democracy at stake and our future on the line, no one is better to prosecute the case against Donald Trump’s dark vision and guide our country in a healthier direction than America’s Vice President, @KamalaHarris,” Newsom wrote on X.
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2 hours ago
Trump says Kamala Harris will be easier to defeat than Biden
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump said on Sunday he thinks Vice President
Kamala Harris will be easier to defeat in November’s election than Democratic President Joe Biden, who earlier in the day stepped aside as his party’s candidate.
“Harris will be easier to beat than Joe Biden would have been,” Trump told CNN.
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2 hours ago
All 50 Democratic party US state chairs back Harris
All 50 Democratic party state chairs have thrown their weight behind Vice President Kamala Harris to be the party’s new presidential nominee, according to sources familiar with the matter.
The chairs held a conference call on Sunday after President Joe Biden announced he was stepping aside as the party’s candidate.
There was “full support” in backing Harris to be at the top of the ticket, one source said.
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3 hours ago
Ukraine’s Zelensky says he respects Biden’s ‘tough but strong’ decision
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday he respected U.S. President Joe Biden’s “tough but strong” decision to end his reelection campaign.
“Ukraine is grateful to President Biden for his unwavering support for Ukraine’s fight for freedom, which, along with strong bipartisan support in the United States, has been and continues to be critical,” Zelensky said in a post on social media platform X.
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3 hours ago
Biden’s granddaughter praises his presidency
Biden’s eldest granddaughter Naomi Biden praised the president on X for being the “most effective president in our lifetime” who has served the United States with “every bit of his soul” and “unmatched distinction”.
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3 hours ago
Hollywood reacts to Joe Biden exiting the presidential race
Hollywood was quick to react to the news that President Joe Biden was ending his bid for reelection and endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris.
Barbra Streisand, a Democratic supporter, wrote Sunday on X that “we should be grateful for his upholding of our democracy.” While many paid tribute to Biden’s presidency, others wondered about the future.
Cher wrote on X that she was “tortured” because she doesn’t believe the Democrats could win without Biden. She said it was time to think “way outside the box” and proposed a split ticket.
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3 hours ago
Low expectation that Harris will get serious challenge following Biden’s endorsement
Inside the White House, there’s low expectation that Harris will get a serious challenge following Biden’s endorsement, according to a person familiar with deliberations who requested anonymity to discuss the private conversations.
Among potential top tier contenders, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has already said she won’t run, while California Gov. Gavin Newsom has said he would back Harris if she became the nominee.
Other names that have been bandied about as viable contenders — including Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper — would also seem unlikely to run in light of Biden’s endorsement for Harris and the expected fundraising advantage she would hold over anyone else.
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3 hours ago
Biden abruptly changed his mind about 2024 race over weekend, sources say
As of Saturday, President Joe Biden was still planning to stay in the 2024 presidential race. But on Sunday afternoon, he shocked many of his senior staff by telling them he was withdrawing just before making the decision public, sources familiar with the matter said.
The sources, speaking to Reuters on condition of anonymity, said Biden began to come to a decision on Saturday night that he should withdraw from the 2024 race. He had spent weeks defiantly insisting he would stay in the race despite pressure from some Democrats to pull out.
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3 hours ago
Rep. Ilhan Omar, member of “The Squad” endorses Kamala Harris for president
Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar, key progressive and member of “The Squad”, endorsed Kamala Harris for president on Sunday after Biden announced he was dropping out of the 2024 presidential race.
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3 hours ago
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz pays tribute to Biden
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz also paid tribute to Biden’s legacy.
“My friend @POTUS Joe Biden has achieved a lot: for his country, for Europe, for the world,” he wrote on X. “His decision not to run again deserves respect.”
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4 hours ago
Defiant Netanyahu to face US Congress amid Biden’s withdrawal
Israeli Prime Minister Binjamin Netanyahu is to deliver a landmark speech to the US Congress this week, a visit that has now been thrown off balance by President Joe Biden’s decision on Sunday not to seek re-election.
Israel’s longest-serving premier will on Wednesday become the first foreign leader to address a joint meeting of the two chambers four times — pulling ahead of Britain’s Winston Churchill on three.
Netanyauhu’s office has announced that the two men would meet on Tuesday.
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5 hours ago
Biden still plans to meet this week with Israeli PM Netanyahu
US President Joe Biden still intends to host Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu at the White House this week, according to a person familiar with the president’s schedule who was not authorised to comment publicly.
The exact timing of the meeting is still not set in stone as Biden continues to recover from Covid-19. Netanyahu is scheduled Wednesday to deliver an address to Congress and he is also expected to meet with Vice President Kamala Harris while in Washington.
An official in Netanyahu’s office confirmed that the Israeli leader was set to travel to Washington, as scheduled, on Monday.
The official also spoke on condition of anonymity pending a formal announcement.
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5 hours ago
‘She’s in a position to come into this race very strong’: Kamala Harris vows to win nomination
Brooklyn College CUNY professor of sociology Gregory Smithsimon said that US Vice President Kamala Harris, who vowed Sunday to win the Democratic nomination and defeat Donald Trump, could be well positioned to take the fight to the Republican candidate. “What’s striking is the Republicans have not found things to grab onto to attack Harris with,” he said.
Smithsimon added that he believed Biden’s party could ill-afford a protracted fight over who would replace the octogenarian as presidential candidate. “It’s going to be imperative that the Democrats coalesce around someone almost immediately,” he said. “This only works if it doesn’t lead to disorder among the party.”
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5 hours ago
UK PM Starmer says he ‘respects’ Biden’s decision
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Sunday he respected US President Joe Biden’s decision to withdraw from the race for the White House, paying tribute to a “remarkable career”.
“I respect President Biden’s decision and I look forward to us working together during the remainder of his presidency,” Starmer wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
“I know that, as he has done throughout his remarkable career, he will have made his decision based on what he believes is best for the American people,” he added.
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5 hours ago
Biden has dropped out of the US presidential race. What happens now?
FRANCE 24’s international affairs editor Kethevane Gorjestani unpacks some of the ways forward for the Democratic Party after Joe Biden’s sudden withdrawal from the White House race.
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5 hours ago
Harris vows to win nomination and ‘defeat Donald Trump’
US Vice President Kamala Harris praised President Joe Biden’s “patriotic” decision not to seek reelection Sunday and vowed to win the Democratic nomination and defeat Donald Trump.
“With this selfless and patriotic act, President Biden is doing what he has done throughout his life of service: putting the American people and our country above everything else,” she said in a statement.
“I am honored to have the president’s endorsement and my intention is to earn and win this nomination … “I will do everything in my power to unite the Democratic Party – and unite our nation – to defeat Donald Trump.”
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(FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP and Reuters)
