U.S. President Joe Biden has suspended his campaign for reelection and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as his replacement.
"I believe it is in the best interest of my party and my country to stand down," Biden said in a letter published to social media on July 21.
Shortly following his announcement, Biden endorsed Harris as the Democratic party's nominee for president in the 2024 election.
"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," Biden said on X.
The announcement comes after weeks of increased pressure from high-ranking Democrats for Biden to drop out of the race.
Concerns regarding Biden's fitness for office and mental acuity intensified following the president's poor debate performance in June. Biden repeatedly dismissed his detractors, insisting he was the best candidate to defeat Republican nominee Donald Trump in November and that there was no medical reason for him to step aside.
Biden, age 81, then tested positive for Covid-19 on July 17. Top Democrats, including former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Representative Adam Schiff, urged the president to drop out of the race.
Biden said he would address the nation later this week with more details about his decision.
"It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President," he said.
Martin Fornusek
A career prosecutor from California, Harris served on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence as a Senator before running in the 2020 Democratic primary. She dropped out of the race and endorsed Biden, who appointed her as his running mate. She became the first female vice president in U.S. history in January 2021.
Harris' work as VP has focused heavily on immigration and reproductive rights, but she has played a role in the Biden administration's foreign affairs efforts.
At Ukraine's global peace summit in Switzerland in June, Harris represented the U.S. and announced over $1.5 billion in additional support for Ukraine. The summit also marked her sixth meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky
In February 2023, Harris accused Russia of crimes against humanity for its war in Ukraine at the Munich Security Conference, saying the aggressor must be held responsible for their "barbaric" war operations.
Former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine John Herbst said that a Harris presidency would likely maintain the same policy towards Ukraine demonstrated by the Biden administration. He added that regardless of the outcome of the November vote, there are still six months left in Biden's term.
Peter Rough, a senior fellow at the conservative Hudson Institute, said it was unclear how Harris would approach Ukraine if elected.
"Although we don't know how Kamala Harris would handle the Ukraine file as president, we do know that she is not a foreign policy specialist and holds progressive values," Rough said.
"For now, I expect continuity on the campaign trail from Harris as she defends the administration's record and seeks to rally the Democratic party."
The Democratic party's official nominee will be named in August at the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago.
Ukrainian officials, including Zelensky, have stressed that Kyiv will continue to cooperate productively with any U.S. administration, regardless of the outcome of the November election.
Oleg Sukhov
(Updated: )
