Barack Obama endorses Joe Biden in 2020 presidential race against Donald Trump

'Joe has the character and the experience to guide us through one of our darkest times and heal us through a long recovery,' Obama said.

Barack Obama has endorsed his former Vice President Joe Biden in the looming presidential race against President Donald Trump.

Obama, who spent two presidential terms alongside Biden, endorsed his former running mate in a video posted Tuesday.

Obama began by offering Americans his well wishes and condolences amid the coronavirus crisis – which has killed at least 24,500 in the US as of Tuesday – before giving his endorsement.

‘Choosing Joe to be my vice president was one of the best decisions I ever made, and he became a close friend and I believe Joe has all the qualities we need in a President right now,’ Obama said.

‘Joe has the character and the experience to guide us through one of our darkest times and heal us through a long recovery, ‘

‘Joe was there as we rebuilt from the Great Recession and rescued the American auto industry. He was the one asking what every policy would do for the middle class and everyone striving to get into the middle class,’ he continued.

Questions began to mount after Obama did not immediately show his public support for Biden, but sources close to Obama have said that the 44th president was just keeping his distance from the race to let voters choose their candidate before he offered his endorsement.

‘At the beginning of the primary process, President Obama made clear that in order for the Democratic Party to be successful in November, Democratic voters would have to select their nominee,’ one strategist close to Obama told Fox News.

Obama’s endorsement comes one day after Bernie Sanders offered Biden his endorsement, which represented the two sides of the party coming together.

‘Today, I am asking all Americans, I’m asking every Democrat, I’m asking every independent, I’m asking a lot of Republicans to come together in this campaign to support your candidacy,’ Sanders said to Biden on Monday.