The 2024 race for the presidential office has been relatively uneventful. However, the past few days have been filled with shocking advancements. From an attempted assassination attempt to fallout after the debate to the Republican National Convention (RNC), a lot is going on right now in U.S. politics.

One of the most shocking moments in recent days was the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump. This moment marks the first attempted presidential assassination that Gen Z has witnessed. 

It’s difficult to tell how much this will affect the race. Polling will likely go in further favor of Trump.

Picture this: Your Great Aunt Betsy was someone part of your extended family who you never really liked. When you see her on the holidays, she turns the TV on too loud, she smells like expired beans and you’ve never seen eye to eye with her on politics when the debate ensues at the Thanksgiving table. One day, you get a phone call that she’s in the hospital. She suffered a serious heart attack, but she’s still alive. Of course, you’re going to feel bad and potentially even visit her. 

Trump stands in stark contrast to your great aunt, but the comparison still stands. Although many Americans didn’t agree with his values or agenda, people are still going to feel bad about the incident. Potentially, this serves as a great opportunity for Trump to win over some independent voters or voters still deciding. 

How has President Joe Biden responded to this? Immediately after, he temporarily took down all ads for his campaign — many of the ads portrayed Trump in a negative light. Biden continued to condemn the attack while speaking at the NAACP convention on July 16.

“It’s time for an important conversation in this country. Our politics has gotten too heated … We all have a responsibility to lower the temperature and condemn violence in any form,” Biden said.

On July 14, Biden also had an Oval Office address — a rare action from him. In addition to the address, Biden also spoke with Trump on the phone, and the two candidates shared a rare yet cordial exchange. Biden’s PR team is working extra hard this week, fighting both concerns over his age and attempting to properly address the recent attack.

“A former president was shot. An American citizen killed while simply exercising his freedom to support the candidate of his choosing … We cannot, we must not go down this road in America. We’ve traveled it before throughout our history. Violence has never been the answer,” Biden said in his address.

Biden also had a much-anticipated interview on NBC with Lester Holt. This interview was a vital public appearance post-debate for Biden to calm concerns. The interview ranged from topics like the recent assassination attempt to political temperature.

“Look, I’ve been doing this a long time. The idea that I’m the old guy, I am. I’m old. But I’m only three years older than Trump, number one. And number two, my mental acuity’s been pretty damn good. I’ve gotten more done than any president has in a long, long time in three and a half years. So I’m willing to be judged on that. I understand. I understand why people say, ‘God, he’s 81 years old. Whoa. What’s he gonna be when he’s 83 years old, or 84 years?’ It’s a legitimate question to ask,” Biden said.

Amid all this press, it seems that a lot of concerns over Biden’s old age have been glossed over. His poor performance at the debated caused an uproar of calls from various politicians for him to drop out. However, with the recent assassination attempt, media focus has shifted elsewhere. Both Democrats and Republicans have admitted to the concerning political tension and promised collaboration, but will these wishes turn into action?