Page "Succession to Muhammad" Paragraph 22

Muhammad asked permission from his wives to spend his last days with Aisha.

Reportedly, before he died, Muhammad made a gesture of enormous trust in Abubakr by asking him to lead the prayers in the mosque as Imam — a highly visible role virtually always undertaken, when possible, by Muhammad himself.

Historically, the Imam of a mosque has always been a leader in his local Muslim community.