2024 US election live updates: Biden and Trump to meet at White House ahead of historic comeback

President Joe Biden is scheduled to meet with President-elect Donald Trump at the White House on Wednesday, following Biden’s pledge to ensure a smooth transition of power to the Republican who defeated him four years after their previous election contest.

Trump, who had refused to concede defeat in 2020, won a landslide election victory on Nov. 5, marking what appears to be an extended period of American politics influenced by his conservative ideology.

Such transition meetings between outgoing and incoming presidents have traditionally been observed, but Trump declined to host Biden following the 2020 election amid unsubstantiated allegations of election misconduct that led to the Capitol incident in January 6, 2021.

While Trump had previously avoided Biden’s inauguration ceremony, the White House confirmed Biden’s intention to attend the upcoming installation.

The White House announced Saturday that the Biden-Trump meeting will take place in the Oval Office as the transition period moves toward the former president’s return to office.

In January, Biden will become one of the few US presidents to hand power back to their predecessor, the only previous event being President Benjamin Harrison’s handover to Grover Cleveland in the 1800s.

Trump, 78 and a former television personality, secured a wider margin of victory despite his legal troubles, including a criminal conviction and two impeachments during his presidency, and despite warnings from his former chief of staff regarding his “fascist” tendencies.

Election analysis showed that voters were primarily concerned with economic problems and inflation rates that have risen during Biden’s tenure in the wake of the Covid pandemic.

Biden, 81, who withdrew from the presidential race in July amid concerns about his age and health, called Trump on Wednesday to congratulate him on his electoral success.