2024 presidential election full of memorable moments

BY ANDREW UTTERBACK / Multimedia Journalist

Election Day is today. As we cap off the cycle, let’s take a look at some of the most significant moments of the race and how they impacted the candidates. 

Trump vs. Biden debate 

The presidential debate between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump was part of an election cycle filled with moments that were memorable to say the least. 

The first, highly anticipated debate between the two candidates ended with resounding calls from his own party for President Biden to step away from his campaign.

Biden’s performance was filled with gaffs and moments of confusion, while Trump took that as a chance to crack jokes about the 81-year old’s mental acuity. 

This debate certainly created a moment of uncertainty on both sides as even the commentators and publications who defended the President’s mental state up until the debate were now calling for a new candidate. 

Trump assassination attempt 

On July 13 at Trump’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania and in front of tens of thousands of Trump supporters, the former President was struck in the ear by an attempted assassin's bullet. Trump survived the attempt, but one of his supporters was killed and two others critically wounded. 

The shooter was quickly killed by a secret service agent.The former President later posted a message on Truth Social sending condolences to the family of Corey Comperatore, the man killed at the rally after shielding his family from the gunshots. 

He ended the message with “GOD BLESS AMERICA” in all caps. 

This moment was a turning point in the election for Trump himself and his supporters. 

Trump appeared humbled by the moment for at least the first part of his anticipated speech at the Republican National Convention and the sense of unity among his supporters and the rest of the Republican party seemed to grow. 

Biden steps away 

Just eight days later on July 21, President Joe Biden announced that he was exiting the presidential race and  gave his support to Vice President Kamala Harris. This move was one that many had been calling for, but was no less shocking when actually announced. 

“It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President. And while it has been my intention to seek reelection, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term,” Biden posted on his X account. 

The Democratic party united around Harris in short order and she was eventually nominated. 

Harris kicked off her campaign with a speech on the final night of the Democratic National Convention. She will notably, if elected, be the first female US President. 

VP Picks

Former President Trump and Vice President Harris chose Ohio Senator J.D. Vance and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as their running mates, respectively. 

The two hit the campaign trail running with many public appearances, some of the most recent being Vance appearing on popular podcast, “This Past Weekend w/ Theo Von” and Walz playing the popular football video game, Madden, with Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. 

The two presidential candidates have also been featured on famous podcasts in recent weeks. Harris “Call Her Daddy,” one of the most popular podcasts in the US, especially among women. Trump later appeared on “The Joe Rogan Experience,” which is the most popular podcast on Spotify in the US. 

The RealClear Polling average has the two candidates virtually tied within the margin of error, in what has been a very close race so far. 

Election Day is Nov. 5.

For more information on how and where to vote, visit your county’s elections’ website.