Biden Endorses Harris. What Comes Next?

President Joe Biden surprised American voters on Sunday when he announced he would drop out of the presidential race after weeks of resisting calls to resign.

Although he will serve out the remainder of his presidential term, he has endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to replace him as the Democratic nominee.

The decision puts the party in uncharted territory just a month before the Democratic National Convention.

Here’s a guide to what might happen next.

The last time a sitting US president abandoned his re-election campaign was Lyndon Baines Johnson in 1968. As a result, the path to nominating a new candidate as Election Day approaches remains unclear.

President Biden has won 3,896 pledged delegates in the Democratic primaries, far more than the number needed to secure his party’s nomination.

These delegates previously voted for the Biden-Harris ticket, but it will ultimately be them who decide which candidate to support as the Democratic nominee at the party’s convention next month.

While Mr Biden’s endorsement makes Ms Harris the most likely candidate to be selected, there is still uncertainty about what will happen after he releases his delegate slate.

The Democratic National Convention is scheduled to begin on August 19.

If Democrats fail to unite behind a new nominee, it could lead to an open convention for the first time since 1968.

That means delegates will be free to decide which of several candidates to vote for if they appear.

Candidates will need the signatures of at least 300 delegates — no more than 50 from a state — to have their names appear on the ballot.

There will be a first round of voting among 3,900 pledged delegates, including voters considered loyal to the Democratic Party.

If no candidate receives a majority of the vote after this first round, there will be additional rounds of voting. These rounds will include superdelegates — party leaders and elected officials — who will vote until a candidate is chosen.

To secure the party’s nomination, a candidate needs 1,976 delegate votes.

As calls for Mr Biden to drop out of the race have grown in recent weeks, a number of potential candidates have emerged.

Michigan’s Democratic governor, Gretchen Whitmer, has been floated as a candidate, although she has said she would not consider running if Mr Biden were to resign. On Sunday, minutes after Mr Biden’s announcement, she said she would do everything she could “to elect Democrats and stop Donald Trump”.

And several people rumored to be replacing Ms Harris have also endorsed her — including California Governor Gavin Newsom, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro.

Some of these candidates could be considered for the vice presidential slot if Ms. Harris ultimately wins the nomination.