President Donald Trump has announced that he will not attend Joe Biden's inauguration as president on January 20 in a move that has been widely discussed since the election on November 3.
"To all of those who have asked, I will not be going to the Inauguration on January 20th," Trump wrote on Twitter on Friday. It was the third tweet he had sent since the social media network temporarily suspended his account.
Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris will be sworn in in 12 days and Trump's term will end.
However, Democrats and some Republicans are calling for Trump to resign or be removed from office as soon as possible following Wednesday's riot at the Capitol.
Trump will become the fourth defeated president in U.S. history not to attend his successor's inauguration.
The last president to do so was Andrew Johnson in 1869, who declined to attend the inauguration of Ulysses S. Grant. This was reportedly a relief to both men. Johnson was also the first president to be impeached.
Trump shared a video acknowledging that he would be leaving office shortly after his temporary Twitter suspension was lifted, after significant criticism from both sides of the aisle about his role in the Capitol riot.
"To the citizens of our country, serving as your president has been the honor of my lifetime. And to all of my wonderful supporters, I know you are disappointed, but I also want you to know that our incredible journey is only just beginning," Trump said in the video.
On Friday, the president posted a tweet that seemed to reiterate his unfounded accusations of voter fraud and to address his supporters who believe the election was stolen from him.
"The 75,000,000 great American Patriots who voted for me, AMERICA FIRST, and MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN, will have a GIANT VOICE long into the future. They will not be disrespected or treated unfairly in any way, shape or form!!!" Trump wrote.
Biden's inauguration is expected to have a significant security presence following the Capitol riot that left five people dead, including a police officer. The Pentagon will deploy 6,000 National Guard troops for the event.
Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy confirmed that there would be a 7-foot tall "unscalable" perimeter fence erected around the Capitol building, where Biden and Harris will take the oath in view of the public. The fence will stay in place for 30 days.
