The shadow of 1968: Biden renounces reelection in a tumultuous election year.

The resignation of the US President, Joe Biden, from seeking reelection for the White House has plunged the country into a dizzying election year that echoes events from a turbulent past: the 'annus horribilis' of 1968. This year, marked by surprises and misfortunes, brings to mind the moment when then President Lyndon B. Johnson decided not to seek reelection due to the unpopularity of the Vietnam War and health issues. The parallels between Biden's decision and Johnson's in 1968 are evident. Both presidents chose to step away from the electoral contest at critical moments for the country. Johnson's announcement in March 1968 paved the way for an open party convention in August, a scenario that will be repeated this year with the Democratic convention in Chicago. The resonance of this election year with that of 1968 is so striking that figures like Robert F. Kennedy Jr., son of the slain presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, have highlighted the similarities between both periods. In 1968, political and social violence was rampant, with the war in Vietnam as a backdrop and two political assassinations that shook the nation. Johnson's withdrawal in 1968 sparked a race within the Democratic Party to find a candidate who could compete with Republican Richard Nixon, who led by a wide margin in the polls. The assassination of Robert F. Kennedy shortly after announcing his candidacy plunged the country into shock, leaving Eugene McCarthy and Hubert Humphrey as the main Democratic contenders. The year 1968 was also marked by the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., an event that shocked American society and added to the atmosphere of turmoil and political violence. Parallels with the present become evident with the recent assassination attempt on Republican candidate Donald Trump at a rally, evoking fears of instability and polarization. The choice of location for this year's Democratic convention in Chicago adds a symbolic element to the comparison with 1968. That convention was the scene of violent clashes between anti-war protesters and the police, leaving deep wounds in the Democratic Party that took years to heal, as expressed by independent candidate Kennedy. Amidst this seemingly repeating historical context, uncertainty and political polarization emerge as key elements in the upcoming electoral campaign in the United States. Biden's decision has opened a new chapter in the country's political history, with consequences yet to be discovered and an uncertain future that only time will reveal.