President Joe Biden announced on Sunday that he will not run for re-election. The Democratic leader made his decision known after several weeks of pressure following his disastrous presidential debate in Atlanta three weeks ago. Biden also announced on social media that he supports the candidacy of his vice president, Kamala Harris, who becomes the favorite to become the standard-bearer for November. What will happen in the coming weeks?
When will the new candidacy be confirmed?
The Democratic Party will begin its national convention on August 19 in Chicago. Biden’s weakness had forced the organization to move up the nomination process to the beginning of the month. Democrats had planned to make the nomination of the candidate through an electronic process on August 9 to avoid the president being left off the ballot in Ohio. The date was set because some states marked that month as the deadline for the November presidential ballots. It is likely that party leaders will work to come up with a solid and united candidacy before the start of the convention.
What will the appointment process be like?
Biden has more than 3,800 delegates who have supported him throughout the Democratic primaries. With his message this Sunday, the president seeks to get his delegates to support Kamala Harris to become the candidate. They are not obliged to support the vice president, although she is the one who has the greatest chances of being the standard-bearer. The party leaders, however, are trying to channel a quick transition to avoid internal chaos.
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If state delegates show their reluctance to back Harris in the coming days and lean towards other profiles, the Democratic Party could hold its first open convention since 1968. In that case, the candidates would have a mini-primary in Chicago (Illinois) starting on August 19. Party leaders can cancel the telematic vote on August 9 and seek to forge the necessary agreements for the meeting in Illinois.
What would an open convention look like?
Harris is the clear favourite. She has secured significant support from within the party, including Bill and Hillary Clinton. She also has access to the $96 million raised by the campaign by the end of June. However, any candidate who collects 300 delegate signatures can sneak into the nomination process. Candidates would be subject to a first round of voting by party delegates, representing all 50 states. A simple majority of 1,976 votes is enough to select the rival to compete against Donald Trump. If there is a tie, which is unlikely as it has not happened in 72 years at Republican or Democratic conventions, a second round would be held.
To eliminate that possibility, big-name rivals to Harris, such as California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, would have to endorse the vice president and thus drop out of the race.
Who will be the vice-presidential candidate?
The decision will be made only by whoever is the party’s candidate. Kamala Harris is in the best position and has hinted in Washington that she will not let much time pass before announcing her partner on the presidential ticket. On the list there are, above all, names of governors from the party who could help her improve her performance in the swing states that are in dispute leading up to November. These are Josh Shapiro, the governor of Pennsylvania; Roy Cooper, of North Carolina; Tim Walz, of Minnesota, and even JB Pritzker, of Illinois. There are also some dark horses in the race. Among them, Senator Mark Kelly, of Arizona, another of the territories that are in play. Some versions indicate that the vice president is considering the name of the tycoon Mark Cuban.
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