Joe Biden announced Wednesday that he will not run for president in 2016 during a press conference at the White House.
The vice president said that his time had run out to launch a successful campaign.
Biden’s announcement followed reports earlier this week that an announcement on his decision was imminent. On Monday, some reports indicated that a source close to the vice president said he would jump into the race for the Democratic nomination against current frontrunner Hillary Clinton.
According to a Washington Post/ABC News poll released Wednesday before Biden’s announcement, 15 percent of Democratic leaning voters would support the vice president if the 2016 primary election were held today and he were on the ballot.
While Clinton maintains a strong lead over fellow Democratic presidential contenders, her support and favorability has waned in recent months as she battles controversy surrounding her use of a personal email system while at the State Department.
Moreover, major fundraisers for President Obama have appeared to sit on the sidelines as Biden considered a run for the White House. A USA Today analysis this week indicated that 91 percent of the 833 individuals who raised money for the Obama-Biden reelection campaign in 2012 are not listed among the ranks of Clinton’s most successful bundlers.