It was 10:30 p.m. in Chicago when President finally appeared onstage at the United Center, where he was met with an extended standing ovation to close out the first night of the Democratic National Convention — and a 50-year career in American politics.
After a month of personal defiance and party infighting, Biden stepped aside as the Democratic nominee on July 21, withdrawing from the presidential race after a disastrous debate performance that sent his party into disarray and pushed even some of his longtime allies to publicly speculate about his ability to serve a second term. His consolation prize: at the . On a beautiful summer Monday in Chicago, the party's elders and up-and-comers lined up one-by-one to help define Biden's legacy as the man who was able to defeat former President , and the one — who after recognizing the odds of the 2024 election — put country before his own political ambition.
In a press release sent out ahead of the convention, ' campaign said of Monday's programming: "While Donald Trump puts himself first, are fighting for the American people. President Biden has exemplified this through his leadership and legacy as a historic president who put the American people's interest above his own." Within the first minute of the convention gaveling to order, Democratic National Convention Committee Chair Minyon Moore praised Biden for leaving the race, describing his decision as "a true act of patriotism" in which the president "passed the torch to t.