Joe Manchin Gives Joe Biden an Election Gift

Senator Joe Manchin, a West Virginia moderate Democrat who is not seeking reelection in November, will not be running for president this year, a staffer confirmed on Friday.

Manchin’s announcement is a gift to President Joe Biden’s campaign as the senator could have posed as an alternative third-party bid, possibly taking away votes from the Democratic incumbent.

The Context:

Speculation about Machin’s potential presidential run has been floated during the upcoming election. While on NBC News’ Meet the Press in November 2023, Manchin told host Kristen Welker, “I will do anything I can to help my country, and you’re saying, ‘Does that mean you would consider it?’ Absolutely,” referring to a presidential bid.

What We Know:

Manchin’s close aide, Jonathan Kott, confirmed to USA Today on Friday that the senator will soon make an announcement that he will not run for president in the upcoming election.

Views:

In a Redfield & Wilton Strategies/Newsweek poll published late last year, Manchin didn’t have a plurality in favor of challenging Biden. Some 24 percent would “support” or “strongly support” a Manchin bid, while 27 percent would be either “opposed” or “strongly opposed.” A total of 1,500 eligible U.S. voters were surveyed in the poll conducted on December 19.

What’s Next?

The presidential nominees in November will likely be Biden and GOP frontrunner former President Donald Trump. Biden won 96.2 percent of the vote in the South Carolina Democratic primary earlier this month after winning New Hampshire in January as a write-in candidate. Meanwhile, Trump has won every state-level primary or caucus so far, aside from the Nevada Republican primary where he was not on the ballot. Trump has been campaigning in South Carolina ahead of its Republican primary election on February 24.

This is a developing story and will be updated when more information is available.