Biden's family urges him to stay in White House race

NEW YORK, July 01 (BBC): Democratic President Joe Biden's family has urged him to ignore calls to step aside following his disastrous debate against Republican Donald Trump.

He spent Sunday with relatives at a presidential retreat where they encouraged him to keep fighting, according to the BBC's US partner CBS News. Anxiety has gripped sections of his party following a rambling and at times incoherent performance in Atlanta.

Polls since then suggest concerns about his age - he is 81 - have increased. A CBS News/YouGov poll released on Sunday indicated that 72% of registered Democratic voters believe the president does not have the mental and cognitive health to serve as president. Nearly half said he should step aside.

But the message from his campaign team and his family is that he remains the party's best hope to defeat Trump.