Biden quits – latest: President surprises campaign staff with phone call – as Kamala Harris tells supporters ‘I know Donald Trump’s type’

Donald Trump is now the old man in the race for the White House and the one “bringing the most baggage”, a former British ambassador to Washington has told Sky News.

Lord Kim Darroch said Mr Trump is the “one who is having to persuade people that he is up to the job and he is going to be okay in four years’ time”.

In a reference to Joe Biden’s gaffes, Lord Darroch said Mr Trump “makes plenty of mistakes in his public appearances as well which will now be seized upon”.

He also noted that Kamala Harris is almost 20 years Mr Trump’s junior.

“I think she’s a very good debater, drawing on her past as a public prosecutor,” he said.

“It’ll be interesting to see if Trump sticks with this second debate in September or if he finds some reason to withdraw.”

While President Biden’s decision to drop out gives the Democrats the chance to field a “younger and more dynamic candidate”, Lord Darroch said he was unsure whether it was their “best play to go straight to Kamala Harris”.

He added: “I rather think they’d be better having a contest – who knows whether she is the best candidate they could have fielded?”

Joe Biden dropping out “presents a new set of problems for Donald Trump”, Lord Darroch said.

“Previously [it] looked to me like he was cruising to a victory – potentially a very big victory, and he now faces some new challenges.”

Lord Darroch resigned as the UK’s ambassador to the US in 2019 – amid a row over leaked memos that were critical of Donald Trump.