WILMINGTON, Del. — President Joe Biden was unharmed Sunday night when a vehicle crashed into a parked Secret Service SUV as he was leaving his campaign headquarters in Delaware.
According to The Associated Press, the SUV was shielding Biden’s motorcade as the president was preparing to leave the facility in Wilmington at about 8 p.m. EST.
A man driving a silver sedan crashed into the black SUV about 200 feet from where Biden was standing, CBS News reported. Secret Service agents with their guns drawn surrounded the vehicle, which had Delaware license plates, and instructed the driver to exit the vehicle with his hands up, according to USA Today. The driver complied.
The SUV was being used to close off intersections near the headquarters as the president prepared to leave the area, the AP reported. The sedan had attempted to continue into a closed-off intersection before it was stopped by the Secret Service.
Biden and first lady Jill Biden were exiting the Biden-Harris 2024 campaign headquarters when a reporter asked the president why he was not doing better in the polls, according to the news organization.
“They’re the wrong polls,” Biden said.
Then there was a bang, and Biden could be heard saying, “Whoa” with a surprised look on his face. An engine then revved and he was rushed into an armored vehicle, NBC News reported. The first lady was already inside the vehicle, according to the news organization.
The motorcade left the scene at 8:09 p.m. EST and arrived at Biden’s residence 11 minutes later, according to USA Today.
There was “no protective interest associated with this event,” Secret Service spokesperson Steve Kopek told CNN in a statement.