(NEXSTAR) – After weeks of insisting he'd stay in the 2024 presidential race, President Joe Biden took himself out of it Sunday.
In a statement on X, Biden recapped his administrations accomplishments over the past three and a half years before saying he would "stand down" in the best interest of the Democratic party and the country.
Calls for Biden to step out of the race have been mounting since a televised debate with former President Donald Trump in June, which raised further questions about his age and mental acuity.
The statement Biden released Sunday included no mention of his health – mental or physical.
Biden said he would continue serving the remainder of his term, and give more details in address to the nation this week.
My Fellow Americans,
Over the past three and a half years, we have made great progress as a Nation.
Today, America has the strongest economy in the world. We've made historic investments in rebuilding our Nation, in lowering prescription drug costs for seniors, and in expanding affordable health care to a record number of Americans. We've provided critically needed care to a million veterans exposed to toxic substances. Passed the first gun safety law in 30 years.
Appointed the first African American woman to the Supreme Court. And passed the most significant climate legislation in the history of the world. America has never been better positioned to lead than we are today.
I know none of this could have been done without you, the American people. Together, we overcame a once in a century pandemic and the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. We've protected and preserved our Democracy. And we've revitalized and strengthened our alliances around the world.
It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President. And while it has been my intention to seek reelection, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term.
I will speak to the Nation later this week in more detail about my decision.
For now, let me express my deepest gratitude to all those who have worked so hard to see me reelected. I want to thank Vice President Kamala Harris for being an extraordinary partner in all this work. And let me express my heartfelt appreciation to the American people for the faith and trust you have placed in me.
I believe today what I always have: that there is nothing America can't do - when we do it together. We just have to remember we are the United States of America.
While Biden stopped short of endorsing Harris in his initial statement, he did so on X just 30 minutes later. Posting a photo of the two of them smiling, he said he offering the vice president his "full support and endorsement."
"My very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my Vice President. And it’s been the best decision I’ve made," he said.
