Biden endorsed Vice President Harris immediately after the announcement, placing her as the presumptive Democratic nominee.
The change at the top of the ticket comes after Biden won the overwhelming majority of delegates with Harris on the ticket.
The announcement ends weeks of speculation about Biden's political future after a poor debate performance against Donald Trump. A slate of Democratic party figures, representatives and senators have called for Biden to drop out in the weeks since the debate.
Here's why there won't be further primaries for the Democratic presidential nomination.
Saurav Ghosh, a lawyer at the Campaign Legal Center, told Reuters that Harris remaining on the ticket makes the transference of those funds easier.
"If Harris remains on the ticket, as either the presidential or vice presidential candidate, the new ticket would maintain access to all the funds," Ghosh said.
Federal law states that a vice presidential candidate has a right to money raised by the campaign, though Dan Weiner, the director of the Brennan Center for Justice's Elections & Government Program, told USA TODAY that the law has grey areas.
"It’s not crystal clear because I’m not sure if the people who drafted the Federal Election Campaign Act anticipated this situation," he said.
President Joe Biden holds news conference at the 2024 NATO Summit on Thursday in Washington, DC. NATO leaders convened in Washington this week for the annual summit to discuss future strategies and commitments and mark the 75th anniversary of the alliance's founding. Kevin Dietsch, Getty Images
All primaries completed, real power in hands of delegates
The last suite of primaries took place on June 4, leaving the task of choosing the party's nominee to the delegates that will gather in Chicago.
"The primaries elect delegates to the convention, but the legal authority for choosing the nominee of the Democratic Party, or for that matter, the Republican Party, is not the primaries, it is the delegates voting in convention. When that happens, you have a formal nominee," Kamarck said.
The Democratic National Committee rules for delegates voted in by the primaries say that: “Delegates elected to the national convention pledged to a presidential candidate shall in all good conscience reflect the sentiments of those who elected them.”
"You are kind of encouraged to vote for the candidates for whom you were elected – but ‘in all good conscience’ you could vote for someone else," Mayer said.
Get updates delivered to you daily. Free and customizable.
Welcome to NewsBreak, an open platform where diverse perspectives converge. Most of our content comes from established publications and journalists, as well as from our extensive network of tens of thousands of creators who contribute to our platform. We empower individuals to share insightful viewpoints through short posts and comments. It’s essential to note our commitment to transparency: our Terms of Use acknowledge that our services may not always be error-free, and our Community Standards emphasize our discretion in enforcing policies. We strive to foster a dynamic environment for free expression and robust discourse through safety guardrails of human and AI moderation. Join us in shaping the news narrative together.
Comments / 0