Washington Post not endorsing presidential candidate for first time in decades

The Washington Post will not be endorsing any candidate for president this year, the newspaper's publisher announced Friday.

In a note to readers, Post publisher William Lewis said the outlet would not back a candidate for president in 2024 or "in any future presidential election."

It is the first time the Post will not be making an endorsement in a presidential race in 36 years.

"We recognize that this will be read in a range of ways, including as a tacit endorsement of one candidate, or as a condemnation of another, or as an abdication of responsibility," Lewis wrote. "That is inevitable. We don’t see it that way. We see it as consistent with the values The Post has always stood for."

He added that the Post's job "is to provide through the newsroom nonpartisan news for all Americans, and thought-provoking, reported views from our opinion team to help our readers make up their own minds."

"Most of all, our job as the newspaper of the capital city of the most important country in the world is to be independent," Lewis concluded. "And that is what we are and will be."

The Post's decision not to endorse either Vice President Harris or former President Trump comes after a similar move at the Los Angeles Times, where owner Patrick Soon-Shiong opted not to endorse either candidate. That decision has led to a number of top editors at the LA Times resigning from the paper in protest.

The Post has endorsed other candidates this cycle, including Democrat Angela Alsobrooks in her Maryland Senate race against former Gov. Larry Hogan (R). In 2020, it backed now-President Biden over Trump, and in 2016, it endorsed Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.

The Post's decision was immediately criticized by famed former top Post editor Marty Baron, who called it "disturbing spinelessness at an institution famed for courage" in a post on the social platform X.

"This is cowardice, with democracy as its casualty," Baron wrote.

The paper is owned by Jeff Bezos, one of the richest people in the world, who hired Lewis this year to replace longtime publisher Fred Ryan.

Lewis's hiring has sparked internal backlash at the Post in connection with an alleged hacking scandal during his time working for conservative tabloids in Great Britain.

Updated at 12:40 p.m. EDT