April 25 (UPI) — President Joe Biden on Tuesday officially announced that he will seek re-election in 2024, releasing a video saying the need to “defend democracy” continues.
In his announcement video, Biden took aim at “extreme MAGA Republicans,” saying they are focused on “taking away” rights and dividing the country. The announcement comes exactly four years after he announced his run in the 2020 election.
“When I ran for president four years ago, I said we are in a battle for the soul of America — and we still are,” Biden said in a statement. “The question we are facing is whether in the years ahead we have more freedom or less freedom, more rights or fewer.
“I know what I want the answer to be. This is not a time to be complacent. That’s why I’m running for re-election. I know America and I know we are good and decent people. I know we are still a country that believes in honesty and respect and treating each other with dignity.”
Biden also named his campaign team, led by Julie Chavez Rodriguez. Rodriguez, the granddaughter of the late Hispanic labor icon Cesar Chavez, had been serving as Biden’s senior adviser and the White House director of intergovernmental affairs.
Quentin Fulks, who served as campaign manager for Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., in his successful 2022 re-election campaign, will serve as Biden’s principal deputy campaign manager.
His campaign’s national co-chairs include Rep. Lisa Blunt-Rochester, D-Del.; Rep. Jim Clyburn, D-S.C.; Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del.; Sen.Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill.; Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-Texas; former Walt Disney Studios chairman Jeffrey Katzenberg and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.
“Every generation of Americans has faced a moment when they’ve had to defend democracy, stand up for our personal freedoms, and stand up for our right to vote and our civil rights,” Biden said. “This is ours. Let’s finish the job.”
Former President Donald Trump, whom Biden unseated in the 2020 presidential election, announced on Nov. 15 he will seek the office again.
Biden, 80, became the oldest president ever to assume office at 78 years old on the day of his inauguration, while Trump, 76, was the second-oldest, entering the White House at 70.
Conservative commentator Larry Elder most recently joined the Republican field, along with former United Nations ambassador Nikki Haley and former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, while Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., has formed a presidential exploratory committee.
Self-help author Marianne Williamson is also seeking the Democratic nomination, along with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., son of former U.S. attorney general and slain 1968 presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy.
