US President Joe Biden has announced he’s dropping out of the race for re-election but will stay on as President of the United States until the end of his term.
The announcement comes after months of speculation about the President’s health and possible cognitive decline.
“It has been the greatest honour of my life to serve as your President. And while it has been my intention to seek re-election, 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,” Biden wrote on social media outlet X, formerly known as Twitter.
Soon after he added a post endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris to be the Democrats candidate for the Presidential election to be held this November.
“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. 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.” Biden wrote.
Former President Barrack Obama, who had called on Biden to step down from the race, responded to the announcement saying Biden had been “a patriot of the highest order.” Biden served as Obama’s Vice President for eight years.
“Joe Biden has been one of America’s most consequential presidents, as well as a dear friend and partner to me. Today, we’ve also been reminded — again — that he’s a patriot of the highest order.” Obama said in a staement.
“Joe has never backed down from a fight. For him to look at the political landscape and decide that he should pass the torch to a new nominee is surely one of the toughest in his life. But I know he wouldn’t make this decision unless he believed it was right for America.”
Obama said that while the days ahead would be uncharted territory the party would create a process that would allow the best nominee for the role of President to step forward.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has acknowledged the US President’s decision and thanked him for a productive working relationship.
“Thank you for your leadership and ongoing service, President Biden,” Albanese wrote in a statement.
“The Australia-US Alliance has never been stronger with our shared commitment to democratic values, international security, economic prosperity and climate action for this and future generations.”
Trump campaign responds to the news
Former President Donald Trump, who was formally endorsed as the Republican candidate last week, has responded to the news. In a message to broadcaster CNN he said Harris would be easier to beat at the polls than Biden.
His campaign also began posting messages to social media saying that if Biden was not able to run for re-election, he was also not suitable to remain in the White House until the end of his term.
