Who is the Democratic candidate for president? - Los Angeles Times
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Who is the Democratic candidate for president?

Former Vice President Joe Biden
Former Vice President Joe Biden is the remaining candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination.
(Matt Rourke / Associated Press)
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The race for the Democratic presidential nomination has effectively ended, now that Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders has suspended his campaign, leaving former Vice President Joe Biden to face President Trump in November.

Joe Biden, former vice president

Joe Biden was the front-runner for much of the race, drawing attacks from several of his rivals and President Trump. He ran into trouble in early-voting states, but an overwhelming victory in South Carolina brought new life and new supporters to his campaign. He won 10 of 14 states that voted on Super Tuesday, and continued widening his delegate lead in subsequent contests.

Biden, a moderate, has decades of political experience — 36 years in the Senate and eight as President Obama’s vice president — which gave his rivals a long record to criticize. He apologized for remarks about working with segregationist senators and was forced to acknowledge President Obama’s legacy of deportations at the southern border.

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House Democrats voted to impeach Trump for attempting to enlist the help of Ukrainian government officials to investigate Biden and his son on unsubstantiated allegations of corruption. Four years ago, before Biden decided not to run, he considered former rival Elizabeth Warren as a vice presidential choice, and during the Obama administration, he worked with former rival Michael R. Bloomberg in a bid to pass gun control measures through Congress. He recently vowed to choose a woman as his running mate and has said he would nominate a black woman to serve on the Supreme Court.

Biden dominated the Democratic endorsement primary, including gaining the support of Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti as well as former rivals Amy Klobuchar, Pete Buttigieg and Beto O’Rourke. And he led in the support from African American voters. He stopped holding in-person campaign events in March because of the coronavirus outbreak. Biden, who was involved in the Obama administration’s response to the 2014 Ebola outbreak, has offered suggestions and criticisms of Trump’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Who has dropped out?

Bernie Sanders speaks at a campaign rally March 9 before his campaign stopped holding in-person events because of the coronavirus outbreak.
(ASSOCIATED PRESS)
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Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders dropped out of the race Wednesday. But he said he would remain on ballots in the remaining primary contests to continue gathering delegates for the Democratic National Convention, giving his supporters the influence to guide the party platform in a more progressive direction.

Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren; former New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg; Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar; former South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg; California activist Tom Steyer; and Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii also ended their campaigns recently.

Others who have left the race: former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick; businessman Andrew Yang; Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet; former Maryland Congressman John Delaney; Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey, Kamala Harris of California and Kirsten Gillibrand of New York; self-help author Marianne Williamson; former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro; New York Mayor Bill de Blasio; former Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper; Washington Gov. Jay Inslee; Montana Gov. Steve Bullock; former U.S. Reps. Beto O’Rourke of Texas and Joe Sestak of Pennsylvania; Miramar, Fla., Mayor Wayne Messam. U.S. Reps. Seth Moulton of Massachusetts, Tim Ryan of Ohio and Eric Swalwell of the Bay Area.

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Booker, Inslee, Moulton, Ryan and Swalwell are all seeking reelection, and Hickenlooper and Bullock will run for the U.S. Senate.

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