How deeply political D.C. reacted when Biden dropped out of presidential race

In the District, where politics has always been king, Biden’s decision reverberated across the city’s coffee shops and bars, street corners and playgrounds, and outside of the Capitol and the White House.

Biden was especially popular in D.C., winning 92 percent of the District’s 2020 general election vote. In the 24 hours following his post, as the reality sunk in that his more than 50-year political career was ending, everyone, it seemed, had thoughts.

Felix Brown, 21, was at Blue Bottle Coffee in Georgetown on Sunday when he noticed the people sitting a few feet away murmuring excitedly. He overheard some of their conversation and turned to the strangers to ask, “Is it true? Did Biden drop out?”

As word spread rapidly around the coffee shop, Brown, a Democrat, said customers began to smile at one another. “I could feel the buzz around me,” he said.

Sheamari Whitaker, 21, a summer intern for a Senate committee, said on Monday that when she first heard the news, she thought it wasn’t real. Biden has been president or vice president for more than half of her life.

“I was not surprised, but a little surprised,” Whitaker said, echoing a response many others gave about learning of the president’s decision. “We’re so deep into the election process so we really weren’t sure how this was going to go.”

As a consensus opinion has emerged that Vice President Harris will likely be the Democratic nominee for president, Whitaker, a rising senior at Howard University, Harris’s alma mater, said she’s excited but also a little wary.

“I’m nervous because of how things went with Hillary Clinton. Not only is Kamala a woman, she’s a Black woman,” Whitaker said. “I’m very concerned about her safety.”

Dorothy Devore, 81, was on her way to work Monday morning as a cashier at a Senate cafeteria, a job she’s held for more than 30 years. The District resident has seen her share of political surprises over the years, but Biden’s decision still came as a shock. She’s fond of the president, she said, but worried about him recently. “Every time I see him on TV he just didn’t look right,” she said.

Walking on Pennsylvania Avenue a few blocks from the Library of Congress shortly after the news broke Sunday, Robert Argento, 35, said he was glad Biden made the decision to drop out.

“It was ‘will they or won’t they?’ for such a long time,” Argento said. “It was a relief that we could move on from this very stressful conversation.”

This being Washington, more than a few people declined to comment on the president’s decision.

“Because of my job, I probably can’t talk about that,” was one version of an answer given by numerous people asked for their opinion about Biden leaving the race. Young Hill staffers were especially eager to avoid the wrath of their bosses by uttering anything without permission.

Biden was at his Rehoboth Beach, Del. home recovering from covid when he made his announcement, but more than a hundred people gathered outside the White House early Sunday evening. Some were tourists whose trips coincided with the news. But dozens, including former Biden officials and staffers congregated at Lafayette Square for a spontaneous rally to honor his accomplishments.

Anne Filipic, who had various roles in the Obama and Biden administrations, said she wanted to show her “gratitude and appreciation” to Biden.

The 42-year-old arrived about 7 p.m. from her Mount Pleasant home with her husband and three kids. A sign on their stroller said: “My future is brighter because of you!” and “Great president, true patriot!”

Filipic, the CEO of Share Our Strength, a D.C. nonprofit fighting hunger and poverty, was eager to “rally behind Vice President Harris” and wanted her kids to be part of the moment, she said.

Former Obama staffers Kyle Lierman, 37, and Amanda Brown-Lierman, 38, had been on vacation three hours away in Deep Creek, Md., and immediately jumped in a car with their three kids to head to D.C. when they heard.

“I’m proud of him,” said Lierman. “I think a lot of us were waiting for him to make this decision and waiting to take his lead.”

Not everyone outside the White House cheered for the president. Independent Michael Wille, 37, a catering sales manager for a sandwich shop in D.C., had a homemade sign reading, “Bye, Joe!” He’d come out as soon as he heard the news.

Wille said he isn’t supporting Trump and said he’d only come out to tell people not to believe anything politicians say. He said he’d like Biden to resign and for a third-party candidate to run, but with Harris likely in the race, he said, “I think it’s great for Trump. He’ll probably win.”

Elsewhere in D.C., the news left some people feeling uncertain.

“Things are so chaotic,” said Grace Koh, 51, as she walked her dog Coco past Eastern Market late Sunday afternoon. “I think that’s the way we all feel about politics right now, right? These are not easy times.”

Koh said she isn’t sure who she’ll vote for in November but said she felt sad for Biden. “I’ve thought about how he’s feeling and how difficult it must have been to make that decision.”

Out for a walk in his Capitol Hill neighborhood Sunday afternoon, Bill Nash, 81, a registered independent, said he too felt empathy for the president. “He is an honorable, dedicated public servant and for him to face the consequences we all face of getting old is very difficult. And it’s sad,” said Nash.

Marquise Lewis, 29, stepped out for a smoke break from his job as a chef at a restaurant on Pennsylvania Avenue SE. He learned of Biden’s decision in the kitchen during a busy afternoon so he was just starting to think about the consequences.

“If you’re physically incapable, I’d say focus on your health. Winning the election and then having health issues isn’t going to help anyone,” he said.

Lewis said he wasn’t the biggest fan of Biden or Trump but he’s willing to give Harris a chance to make her case. Traditional politics isn’t winning him over.

“We just need new blood,” he said. “Someone not D or R, just someone doing the best for the American people.”

Gebre Hiwot, 61, of D.C., said Biden made the right decision to leave the race. “What he did for the country was great,” he said. “Now it is time for him to step aside.”

An immigrant from Ethiopia who has lived in Washington for 36 years and owns a convenience store, Hiwot said it was time to give Harris an opportunity. “Personally I don’t like her but she’s a much better person to run than Biden,” he said. “And anyone is better than Trump.”

Outside of Eastern Market on Capitol Hill late Sunday afternoon, Malaika Tull, 11, said she and her mother had just been talking about Biden’s announcement and what it meant. Not only for Biden, but for his vice president. Malaika, a rising sixth grader, isn’t sure if Harris will be elected but she’s holding out hope.

“As a Black girl, I think it’s inspiring to know that a Black female could be the next president of the United States,” she said. And she has another reason she’s rooting for Harris: Malaika’s middle name is Kamala.