President Joe Biden is dropping out of the race for the White House

President Joe Biden said Sunday he is no longer running for re-election. Paving the way for a new Democratic nominee amid a groundswell of concerns about his age and his ability to challenge Donald Trump in November.

“It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your president.” he said in a letter. “And while it has been my intention to seek re-election, I believe it is in the best interests of my party and the country that I resign and for the remainder of my term concentrate solely on fulfilling my duties as president.”

As mentioned above, Biden emphasized that he will still serve as president until the winner of the November election takes office. He also said he will make a speech in the country later this week about his decision.

The announcement will immediately throw the party’s nominating process into chaos, with just weeks to go until the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. But immediately after releasing this letter, Biden posted a second statement officially endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris to replace him as the nominee.

The president and his allies had tried to quell fears about his age — Biden is 81 — after a disastrous first debate against Trump in Atlanta in June. The White House blamed his performance on a cold and an intense international travel schedule. But despite assurances to lawmakers in Washington, fellow Democrats began abandoning his bid en masse as his voting numbers plummeted and his donors began to withhold their support.

Questions about his bid only intensified after Trump’s assassination attempt, a moment of collective horror that solidified the former president’s base and further united his party at the Republican National Convention. Whoever wins the Democratic nomination will have to select a running mate to take on Senator JD Vance, Trump’s vice presidential nominee.

The president’s decision came after Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) both met privately with had had him to express their concerns that the party could suffer a total defeat across the board in November. should he stay in the race. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-California) also spoke to Biden to share troubling polling showing he was unable to beat Trump.

Many allies calling for him to resign had simultaneously praised Biden’s immense successes during the White House occupation, especially as a president tasked with cleaning up the so-called mess created by the Trump administration. In his letter, Biden praised those successes.

“I know none of this would have been possible without you, the American people,” he wrote. “Together we overcame a once-in-a-century pandemic and the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. We have protected and preserved our democracy. And we have revitalized and strengthened our alliances around the world.”

Combined with other figures showing that nearly two-thirds of Democrats wanted him to withdraw, Biden said he would do so in the best interests of the party.

“For now, I want to express my deepest gratitude to everyone who worked so hard to see me re-elected,” the president wrote. “I want to thank Vice President Kamala Harris for being an extraordinary partner in all of this work. And let me express my sincere appreciation to the American people for the faith and trust you have placed in me.”

Years of planning will now be in question and Democratic delegates will have to rally around a new candidate in August, with just months to go until the election.

Even though Biden supported Harris once he releases his promised delegates they are free to nominate whoever they see fit at an open convention.

Harris could provide continuity, and she is doing well in a potential contest against Trump. Other candidates include California Governor Gavin Newsom, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and former hopefuls like Sens. Cory Booker (NJ) and Amy Klobuchar (Minn.).

Republicans across the board used their airtime at the RNC to blast Harris’ role in the White House, attempting to portray her as the Biden administration’s “border czar.” The vice president was not, in fact, appointed to such a post or charged with resolving the border crisis. But it shows what the GOP is like the foundation has already been laid to attack her on issues they blame Biden for.

Biden’s decision will also upend Trump’s own bid for re-election as he is forced to face a new and likely younger opponent. He has insisted he will defeat any Democrat the party puts forward.