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2024 election live updates: Bernie Sanders calls on Dems 'to stop the bickering'

Sanders expressed his support for Biden in a New York Times guest essay.

Last Updated: July 12, 2024, 4:55 PM EDT

President Joe Biden is facing a critical point in his reelection bid as Democratic calls for him to exit the 2024 race continue to mount despite his efforts to shut them down.

A poor debate performance against Donald Trump reignited questions about Biden's age and fitness to carry out his campaign and serve another four years. Biden has defiantly insisted he is staying the course, telling lawmakers this week he is not going anywhere.

Biden held his first news conference since the debate Thursday evening -- taking multiple questions about his political future.

Jul 12, 2024, 4:55 PM EDT

Whitmer won't attend Biden Detroit rally

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will not attend Biden's campaign event in Detroit on Friday, her spokesperson confirmed to ABC News.

Whitmer, who is the Biden campaign co-chair, is in Sun Valley, Idaho, for the annual Sun Valley Conference, an exclusive, private retreat of tech and media power players.

She’s had that travel planned for several weeks, the spokesperson said. Biden officially announced his Michigan rally this week.

Rep. Elissa Slotkin of Michigan, who is running for the state’s open Senate seat, will also skip the rally, according to her spokesperson.

"The congresswoman had previous commitments outside Michigan today," a spokesperson told ABC News.

-ABC News' Isabella Murray

Jul 12, 2024, 2:45 PM EDT

19th House Democrat calls on Biden to bow out of race

California House Democratic Rep. Mike Levin released a statement Friday calling on Biden to stand aside and not run for reelection.

"It is time to move forward. With a new leader. Together," he said.

Levin is the 19th House Democrat to call on Biden to leave the race.

Rep. Mike Levin, a Democrat who represents California's 49th Congressional District, speaks at a supporter's "house party," June 1, 2024, in Encinitas, Calif.
Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

Levin said he has been vocal about his views with his colleagues and has heard from "several hundred" of his constituents who expressed worry about the election.

"We must prevail against the incalculable threat Donald Trump poses to the American institutions of freedom and democracy," he said.

-ABC News' Lauren Peller

Jul 12, 2024, 4:17 PM EDT

2 Iowa Democratic House candidates join call for Biden to step aside

Two Democrats looking to flip red seats in Iowa said Friday that Biden needed to end his reelection bid.

Sarah Corkery, who is running for the state's 2nd District seat which represents 22 counties in the state including Cedar Rapids, told the Des Moines Register that "now is the time for him to pass the baton to Vice President Kamala Harris.

"She will continue the fight to keep our democracy alive," Corkery told the paper.

In this Aug. 17, 2022 file photo, Christina Bohannan, Democratic candidate for Iowa's 1st Congressional District, speaks at the Des Moines Register Political Soapbox during the Iowa State Fair.
Zach Boyden-Holmes/The Register/ USA Today Network

Fellow Democrat Christina Bohannan, who is vying to flip the state's 1st Congressional District, which includes Iowa City, echoed the call for Biden to bow out.

Bohannan said in a statement posted on X that she's heard from a lot of voters who are concerned about Biden's viability.

The district is being heavily targeted by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, which lists it among 33 Republican-held or open seats it considers in play this November.

"It is time for President Biden to withdraw from this campaign and pass the torch to a new generation of leadership," Bohannan said.

-ABC News' Isabella Murray

Jul 12, 2024, 2:21 PM EDT

Biden to speak with progressive, moderate Democrats this weekend: Sources

President Biden is expected to speak with members of the New Democrat Coalition, a large group of self-styled moderates in the House, over the weekend, multiple Democratic sources told ABC News.

The group includes several Democrats who have called for him to withdraw from the race, including Reps. Adam Smith, Pat Ryan, Mikie Sherrill, Mike Quigley, and Jim Himes.

It’s not clear how many of those members will join the call. But it could be an opportunity for some of them to make their case directly to Biden.

The president plans to also meet with members of the Progressive Caucus on Saturday, according to sources.

-ABC News' Ben Siegel and Rachel Scott