US President Joe Biden said on Monday that he is aware of concerns about his age, but stressed that he is running for re-election in 2024 to defend democracy, which Donald Trump wants to “destroy”.

“A lot of people seem to focus on my age. I understand that. Trust me, I know that better than anyone“, pointed out 80 years old Biden speaking to supporters during a campaign fundraiser in New York.

“I am running because our democracy is at risk. Because in 2024 we will vote again for the future of democracy. And I don’t want there to be any doubt: The Donald Trump and the Republicans his supporters are determined to destroy American democracy. And I will always defend, protect and fight for our democracy,” Biden emphasized.

Polls show that a large portion of voters consider Biden too old to run again for the US presidency.

The Democratic president’s election campaign focuses on the positive news of the US economy and his ambitious plans to revive industrial production. However so far, it has not managed to push Americans’ concerns about Biden’s age into the background.

A few days ago, influential Democratic columnist David Ignatius addressed these concerns in an op-ed in the Washington Post. Although he expressed his “admiration” for the Democratic president, Ignatius estimated that by running again, Biden “risks reversing his greatest success, which was that he was able to stop Trump.”

And Trump himself is facing questions about his age, as he is already 77 years old. In an interview he gave on Sunday to the NBC television network, he estimated that Biden’s problem is not his age, but “his incompetence.”

The latest polls show that although the age difference between the two men is not great, Americans are more worried about Biden.