WASHINGTON — With President Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee for the 2024 election, announcing he will suspend his reelection campaign, the Democratic National Convention has been thrown into chaos.
Instead, it's likely the party will prop up Vice President Kamala Harris at the top of the ticket, after Biden endorsed her shortly after dropping out of the race.
But there is still the chance that another presidential hopeful could swoop in and try to secure some of Biden's delegates, who are now free agents able to vote for whomever they chose.
When is the Democratic National Convention?
The national convention for the Democrats is scheduled to begin on Aug. 19 at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. It will run for three days, ending on Aug. 22.
It is the first presidential convention for the Democrats since the coronavirus pandemic-affected Milwaukee event in 2020, which was partially virtual to adhere to social distancing measures at the start of the virus' spread through the U.S.
What could happen at the DNC convention?
With Biden stepping aside, Democrats technically start with an open convention. But realistically, his endorsement pushes Democrats into murky territory.
The immediate burden is on Harris to solidify support across almost 4,000 delegates from the states, territories and District of Columbia, plus more than 700 so-called superdelegates that include party leaders, certain elected officials and former presidents and vice presidents.
Isn't there a roll call before the convention?
Democrats initially planned a Zoom "roll call" for delegates ahead of the convention, in order to finalize Biden's nomination.
The early roll call was set up after Ohio election officials said the DNC would be too late to put the Democratic nominee's name on the state's ballots. After the Democrats decided to vote early, before the convention, Ohio legislators passed a bill that would make an exception for the DNC, subverting the issue.
But with Biden dropping out, it remains unclear what is going to happen on that virtual roll call, or if it will even happen at all. Analysts pointed out while Biden was still in the race and fending off calls to step down that the Democrats didn't need to hold the early call after Ohio changed the state's rules for 2024.
Biden supporters pushed for the early August call because they believed it would secure him the nomination, putting to bed calls for him to exit the race. But those in favor of him stepping down argued that because of the Ohio rule change, it would be better to have the vote at the convention.
What will happen to Biden's delegates?
Biden had already become the de facto Democratic nominee by the time he chose to drop out, leaving the Democratic party with a problem: who do the delegates pledged to him vote for instead?
Technically, because the candidate they are pledged to has withdrawn, the delegates are free to choose whomever they want.
Who could replace Biden?
Minutes after announcing his own plans to leave the race, Biden endorsed his running mate, Vice President Kamala Harris, for the top of the Democratic ticket.
Harris has been pointed to as the obvious successor to Biden, and has the support of him and other top Democrats. She also has access to the campaign's war chest — nearly $100 million in campaign funds — that could only be used if she was the nominee to replace him.
But despite Harris being the easy pick, it's possible there will be drama at the convention as another presidential hopeful looks to pick up Biden's delegates.
Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders has run in Democratic primaries in 2016 and 2020, both times losing to the establishment candidate (Hillary Clinton in 2016 and Biden in 2020). But he has a grassroots base of support that would make him a possible candidate to replace Biden.
California Governor Gavin Newsom is another possible replacement contender. Newsom has executive experience, and has clear presidential ambitions, despite choosing not to run against Biden. But a spokesperson for Newsom confirmed earlier this month he would not challenge Harris in a potential late-in-the-season race.