CNN
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President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, former President Donald Trump and Sen. J.D. Vance are marking the 23rd anniversary of the September 11 attacks, a move that appears to put political hostilities on the back burner as the country remembers the tragedy.

All four leaders are in New York on Wednesday for a memorial event at Ground Zero in Manhattan. Trump and Harris, just hours after their first face-to-face meeting during Tuesday night’s presidential debate, shook hands before the solemn memorial ceremonies after Harris turned to Trump and both extended a hand. Vance and Harris did not appear to interact.

Harris and Biden will then travel to Shanksville, Pennsylvania, to participate in a wreath-laying ceremony at the Flight 93 memorial, according to a schedule provided by the White House. Later in the afternoon, they will both travel to the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, for another wreath-laying ceremony.

Trump will also travel separately to Shanksville later on Wednesday, according to a source familiar with his plans.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, will also attend an event to commemorate the anniversary. His office has not said where the event will be held.

While candidates who have actively campaigned in the past have traditionally avoided politics on the anniversary of the attacks, this campaign cycle has been notoriously toxic, and it remains to be seen whether and how any campaign will engage in politics on Wednesday.

Nearly 3,000 people were killed when Islamic terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners on September 11, 2001. Two planes crashed into each of the World Trade Center’s Twin Towers in Lower Manhattan. Another plane crashed into the Pentagon, and the fourth crashed into a field in rural Pennsylvania after passengers tried to thwart the hijacking.

Last year, Biden celebrated the 22nd anniversary with a ceremony with U.S. troops in Alaska. During that ceremony, the president falsely claimed to have visited Ground Zero “the next day” after the attacks. In reality, he went there nine days later.

The president visited the Pentagon during the 2022 commemoration. In 2021, he and first lady Jill Biden also traveled to each of the three sites of the terrorist attack. They were joined by former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama at the commemoration in New York.

How Candidates Have Dealt with 9/11 in the Past

Wednesday’s events mark the sixth election cycle in which presidential candidates have navigated the somber anniversary amid a heated campaign period.

Over the years, the day has offered both an opportunity for unity and a window into deep divisions. For three straight cycles, Trump — himself a New York native who has in the past repeated false claims about the terrorist attack — has been the Republican nominee.

Four years ago, then-candidate Biden and then-President Trump managed to avoid each other when they both attended memorials at Ground Zero. They later traveled to Shanksville, but they too failed to cross paths.

Instead, Biden greeted then-Vice President Mike Pence by giving him an elbow bump, as has been customary in the Covid era.

In 2016, both Trump and Hillary Clinton attended commemorations of the 15th anniversary of 9/11 at Ground Zero. Clinton left the event abruptly after becoming ill and appearing unsteady, prompting Trump to later question her health. She was diagnosed with pneumonia.

Then-President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney did not cross paths in 2012. Instead, Obama attended events at the sites of the terrorist attacks while Romney campaigned in Nevada. Still, Romney held back from criticizing his opponent: “There’s a time and a place for that, but today is not it,” he said.

It’s all a far cry from 2008, when Obama and Sen. John McCain laid a wreath together at Ground Zero, setting aside their bitter campaigning for at least a few hours to commemorate the somber anniversary.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

CNN’s Kit Maher and Betsy Klein contributed to this report.