After President Biden announced his decision not to seek re-election, speculations arose regarding the possibility of Senator Joe Manchin from West Virginia seeking the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination or becoming Vice President Kamala Harris’s running mate to assist her in the race for the White House. In response to these speculations, Manchin made a statement on Monday.
“I have no intention of running for public office,” Manchin stated on the “CBS This Morning” program, “I do not have such plans… my life does not require this.”
“I want to make it clear that I will not run for president,” he further emphasized.
Just a day before Manchin made these statements, there were reports suggesting that he was considering re-registering as a Democrat to challenge Vice President Harris. Harris has already garnered Biden’s support and is preparing to succeed him as the Democratic Party’s presidential candidate.
Manchin called for holding small-scale primaries, stating he “cannot believe” such a process would not be implemented.
“No one is willing to step up and speak,” Manchin said. “We cannot see a vibrant, even a three-week long primary process.
“They will say, ‘Oh, we are behind, we can only follow the trend,'” he said. “I’m sorry, I do not agree with this approach.”
Manchin pointed out several topics that are worth discussing, including border security issues.
This is the clearest stance he has taken on the possibility of running for president so far. Not long ago on CNN, when asked if he would run for the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination alongside Harris, he responded, “I do not think so, I do not know. We will wait and see.”
He also urged for the selection of the most qualified candidate through the process and explicitly stated he would not serve as Harris’s Vice President.
Manchin has long been regarded as a moderate within the Democratic Party. In May of this year, he announced his departure from the Democratic Party to become an independent candidate. He had considered challenging Biden in the primaries but ultimately decided against it.
Biden announced his withdrawal from the 2024 election on Sunday. He stated that he would deliver a national address later this week to explain his decision to withdraw.
“Serving as your president has been the greatest honor of my life,” Biden wrote in a letter posted on social media. “I had intended to seek re-election, but considering the best interest of my party and country, I have decided not to run again and instead focus on fulfilling my duties as president during the remaining time in my term.”
Just hours before Biden’s letter, Manchin became the fifth senator to call for Biden to withdraw from the presidential race.
“I believe it is time to pass the baton to a new generation,” Manchin said on a CNN program. When asked if he would consider running as Vice President alongside Harris, he said, “No.”
“This is a new generation; no one would want a 76-year-old Vice President,” he continued. “I have never actually worked with Kamala Harris.”
Manchin also stated that he will not seek re-election in the Senate race this November.
“I hope that he (Biden) can play his role as president well in the last five months of his term… do his best to unite our country and focus on world peace,” Manchin said.
After receiving Biden’s endorsement, Harris stated on Sunday that she intends to seek and secure the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination.
“There are 107 days until the election day. We will fight together and strive together,” Harris stated in a press release. “United, we can win.”