Joe Biden tells 'The View' he 'wasn't surprised' Kamala Harris lost election to Donald Trump (2025)

Former President Joe Biden has opened up on The View about his thoughts on Vice President Kamala Harris — whom he bowed out of the 2024 election cycle to endorse — losing the presidential race against Donald Trump.

After a warm Thursday morning introduction from moderator Whoopi Goldberg ahead of Biden's live interview with all six View cohosts, the panelists inquired about a long list of developments that unfolded across the last year — including Harris' devastating loss to Trump.

"Last time you were here was a little over a month before the election, and you had made the selfless and very difficult decision, I'm sure, to step aside," Sara Haines said. "Democrats were feeling optimistic about the vice president's chances of winning the presidency. But then election night came, and it was like 2016 all over again. So, why do you think the vice president lost, and were you surprised?"

The 82-year-old collected his thoughts before admitting that he "wasn't surprised" by Harris' loss to Trump.

"Not because I didn't think the vice president was qualified to be president," he clarified. "She is, she's qualified to be president of the United States of America. I was surprised because they went the sexist route, the whole route. 'This is a woman,' she's this, she's that, really, I've never seen as successful and consistent [of a] campaign undercutting the notion that a woman couldn't lead the country — and a woman of mixed race."

He reiterated that he "was very disappointed, but I wasn't surprised" by Trump defeating Harris, but he was surprised by "the success to which they've gone in some of the attacks they've made" on the Republican side.

Biden added that he still speaks to Harris "frequently" and that she's even sought his opinion on her next steps, though he wouldn't reveal what those steps might be.

Legal expert Sunny Hostin then further pressed Biden on Harris, to which he responded by telling her that Harris "was in every aspect and every decision" they made in office.

"We had a very successful effort to change the direction of the country and we did. She was every single part of that," explained Biden, before Hostin brought up a pivotal moment in Harris' campaign that saw her say on The View that there was "not a thing that comes to mind" in terms of what she'd do differently from Biden's presidency — a moment that was widely used in Republican attack ads against Harris.

"First of all, I did not advise her to say that, No. 1. I was vice president, I understand the role. No. 2, I think she was talking about, she wouldn't have changed the successes we've had, as opposed to wouldn't change anything at all," Biden observed. "That was used in a way that is contrary to what she meant by it when she said that. She was part of every success we had. We argued like hell, by the way. That's good.... we worked it out, it was a mutual thing."

Elsewhere, Biden also told the cohosts that he's doing well, but weighing options for how he can be of service to American people after his presidency, amid writing "another book," he confirmed.

Hours before Biden's appearance on The View, cohost Alyssa Farah Griffin made headlines for slamming his post-office approach to public life, calling him a "messenger no Democrat wants to see out there right now" during a discussion on CNN.

"People are ready to move on, with due respect to the former president. And most former presidents give their legacy some time to breathe," Griffin said Wednesday on the network. "I think of Jimmy Carter. When he lost, he didn't go out there and do a lot of interviews. He gave his legacy some time. A decade later, he was one of the most beloved former presidents. If I were giving advice to Joe Biden, it would be to give your legacy some time to breathe."

Biden previously appeared on The View in September 2024, two months after dropping out of the presidential race and endorsing VP Harris to succeed him on the ticket.

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While there, Goldberg told the former president that she "didn't like" the way Democrats publicly called for him to step down following his disastrous performance during a presidential debate against Trump.

Others who urged Biden to exit the race included Goldberg's View colleagues, namely Griffin and Sarah Haines, who said last year on the air that "President Biden needs to step down and be replaced if we want to defeat Donald Trump in November."

The Viewairs weekdays at 11 a.m. ET/10 a.m. PT onABC.