Politics Series: Presidential Conventions
History of Presidential Conventions: What Happens Next?
Implications of President Biden’s Departure from the 2024 Race
“May you live in interesting times,” goes an apocryphal Chinese curse.
Interesting times, indeed. The recent departure of President Joe Biden from the 2024 presidential race has implications for the race that are both obvious and subtle. But especially, it poses several questions:
- So, what will happen next?
- Is this unprecedented?
- Has this ever happened in the past?
Something similar has happened in American history: a favored candidate, an incumbent president, dropped out before the Party Convention.
This occurred before the Chicago Democratic Convention of 1968 when President Lyndon B. Johnson chose not to seek his Party’s nomination for president.
But never before has a president left a reelection race this close to the Convention and Election Day. Nor has it happened this late in the campaign process, when President Biden has won all State primaries and caucuses, except the American Samoa territory.
