Rumors have circled around a possible Manchin run for president. Now Manchin is opening up to the American people.
And Joe Manchin made a sudden announcement that’s shaking up 2024.
Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., said in a new interview on a local radio station that any third-party candidate, including himself, would have a “long shot” of winning the presidential race in 2024.
“I know that a third-party candidate, myself or anyone else who wants to jump into that fray, is really a long shot,” Manchin said on West Virginia’s “Watchdog Radio” program.
“But if you can get a movement to where you can move the two established parties, the Democrat and Republican, back to where their roots are, where they’ve come from, and what they’ve been able to produce over all these years, they can get back to some normality.”
Manchin also advocated for election reforms like as term limits and other methods that would pique the interest of moderate voters.
According to the Wall Street Journal, he and his daughter have been courting wealthy political donors in order to form a centrist political organization.
Manchin is also working to increase the use of ranked-choice voting, which allows voters to rank candidates in order of preference, eliminating the need for separate runoff elections by reallocating votes until one candidate has a majority.
“Right now you can’t compete in the system we have because it’s a closed system. You only have a duopoly of Democrat and Republican — you have very little activity,” he said.
Manchin declared earlier this month that he would not run for re-election to the Senate. He has since pondered his political future.
“When America is at her best, we get things done by putting country before party, working across the aisle, and finding common ground. Many times this approach has landed me in hot water, but the fight to unite has been well worth it,” he said in a video posted on X.
“After months of deliberation and long conversation with my family, I believe in my heart of hearts that I’ve accomplished what I set out to do for West Virginia. I’ve made one of the toughest decisions of my life and decided that I will not be running for re-election to the United States Senate,” he added.
To the West Virginians who have put their trust in me and fought side by side to make our state better – it has been an honor of my life to serve you. Thank you. My statement on my political future: pic.twitter.com/dz8JuXAyTL
— Senator Joe Manchin (@Sen_JoeManchin) November 9, 2023
Manchin has stated that he would “absolutely” consider running for president in 2024.
By allying himself with the third-party “No Labels” organization, the senator has long stoked talk about a presidential bid.
What’s interesting is that if Manchin decides to run as a third-party, it could hurt Trump more than Biden.
Manchin was already a pariah in his own party for refusing to sign on to their most radical agendas.
With the Left currently backing Biden or really any rabid progressive, Manchin could resonate more with Independents who are voting for Trump because they just can’t go for Biden.
Of course, this is all speculation. Only time will tell.
Stay tuned to Prudent Politics.
