Biden Bows Out; Dems Rally to Harris
July 23, 2024
After growing pressure from Democratic officials, donors, staff, and lawmakers, President Joe Biden officially withdrew from the presidential race.
- Biden quickly threw his support behind Vice Presidential Kamala Harris for the Democratic nomination.
- Harris declared her intent to run and quickly wracked up major endorsements from likely challengers and party leaders.
- From a policy perspective, Harris will begin to define herself in the race. In 2019-2020, she was more progressive on some issues than Biden, but she never had to pivot to a general election message.
Why it matters: The move upends an already tumultuous race, but allows Democrats to move past the questions of Biden’s age and refocus their message. See our separate story on Biden’s polling numbers since the debate.
What they’re saying: The timing is short, but a nomination battle is looking unlikely as Harris consolidates support from different wings of the party. As of Monday evening, the endorsements were as follows:
- Harris quickly locked in endorsements from Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal (D-CA), New Democrat Coalition Chair Annie Kuster (D-NH), the Congressional Black Caucus, Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chair Nanette Barragán (D-CA), and progressive star Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY).
- Numerous senators also backed Harris: Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Patty Murray (D-WA), Mark Warner (D-VA), Mark Kelly (D-AZ), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Chris Murphy (D-CT), Tina Smith (D-MN), John Fetterman (D-PA), Dick Durbin (D-IL), and Sherrod Brown (D-OH), among others.
- Potential challengers also rallied to Harris, including Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA), Gov. Josh Shapiro (D-PA), Gov. Andy Beshear (D-KY), Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D-IL), Gov. Wes Moore (D-MD), Gov. Phil Murphy (D-NJ), Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D-MI), and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
- Top Democratic congressional leadership, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, released statements following the Sunday announcement but did not mention or endorse Harris. However, Pelosi endorsed Harris on Monday and the others could follow suit in short order.
- Former President Barack Obama, reportedly a key figure in the campaign to push Biden out, has not endorsed Harris. Former President Bill Clinton and 2016 nominee Hillary Clinton quickly endorsed Harris.
What’s next: Biden has released his delegates and the campaign has officially switched to “Harris for President.” The convention runs from August 19 to 22.
- Depending on what challengers emerge, Democrats may convene some pre-convention process or forum for candidates.
- The vice presidential candidate speculation has begun, with names like Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ), Gov. Roy Cooper (D-NC), and Gov. Josh Shapiro (D-PA) being floated.
- Sen. Joe Manchin (I-WV), who left the Democratic party earlier this year, briefly flirted with re-joining to run at the convention. He later confirmed he would not run for the nomination.
The bottom line: This is a developing story, but the positive reaction from donors, elected Democrats, and Democratic voters point to Harris being the nominee.
Contact David McCarthy (dmccarthy@crefc.org) with questions.