In the space of a week, people tried to take out both candidates for the presidency of the United States. On Saturday, July 13, Thomas Matthew Crooks tried and failed to assassinate former President Donald Trump with a bullet at a rally in Pennsylvania. On Sunday, July 21, a statement on President Joe Biden’s X account announced that he would not seek renomination but would complete his term as president. Shortly afterward, a second statement endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee.

The president was not seen in public from Wednesday, July 17, to Tuesday, July 23. His team said he had a mild case of COVID. On Wednesday, July 24, he delivered a 10-minute address from the Oval Office. Biden confirmed that he would not run again but did not tell the public why he was quitting, or how he had reached his decision, or what had changed since July 12, when he had told a rally in Detroit, “I am running and we’re going to win.”