Biden is resisting Democrat pressure to step aside

Significance

The party’s initial shock at Biden’s performance in his televised debate with Donald Trump on June 27 has not dissipated, but it is not yet clear whether or how it will trigger a change of candidate. This would require Biden to relinquish the candidacy voluntarily, which he appears reluctant to do.

Impacts

• The Democratic National Convention, which starts in Chicago on August 19, provides a de facto deadline for change.
• Wide viewership of genuine clips from his debate performance may make deepfake images showing him stumbling more easily accepted.
• Democratic candidates for Congress and state legislatures will find it more difficult to defend Biden’s campaign in public.