President Joe Biden will host President-elect Donald Trump for a traditional postelection meeting in the Oval Office on Wednesday (November 13), according to a White House announcement on Saturday. The meeting, scheduled for 11 a.m. ET is a customary practice between outgoing and incoming presidents, symbolizing the peaceful transfer of power in American democracy.
However, this tradition was not observed in 2020. After losing his reelection bid, Trump did not host Biden at the White House during the transition in administrations after the 2020 election, nor did he accompany Biden to the swearing-in ceremony outside the U.S. Capitol on Inauguration Day. Instead, Trump and his wife, Melania, left the White House that morning and flew to Florida.
Earlier in the week, Biden called Trump to congratulate him on his victory over Vice President Kamala Harris and to extend the invitation for the meeting. Trump's victory marks the first time a former president has returned to power since Grover Cleveland in 1892.
Incoming First Lady Melania Trump has also been invited to the White House to meet with First Lady Jill Biden, though the date for this meeting is yet to be confirmed.