Three campaign strategists have reportedly declined leading President Joe Biden’s potential 2024 campaign, raising red flags that Democrats are concerned about the president’s chances of reelection.
As Biden is reportedly preparing to launch his reelection campaign in April, his advisers have been turned down by three campaign strategists three separate times, the New York Times reported. The strategists who declined to work with the president also refused to have additional conversations about the post for professional reasons.
The rejection to Biden’s 2024 campaign is significant because polling shows a majority of Democrats do not want Biden to run in 2024. A recent poll reveals only 37 percent of Democrats want him to launch a second bid, down from 52 percent before the 2022 midterm elections.
Nevertheless, it appears Biden is still planning to seek a second term. The Times reported that Biden is trying to convince his team the best location for his 2024 campaign headquarters would be his home in Wilmington, Delaware, where classified documents were found stashed in his home and garage.
President Joe Biden returns to the White House after a physical exam at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Thursday, Feb. 16, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Not everyone reportedly agrees with Biden on the location. Reports suggest some advisers believe Biden’s Wilmington home “would make recruitment harder, with younger campaign aides not eager to spend a year in a sleepy, small town.” Others reportedly want the headquarters in Philadelphia, where his 2020 campaign was based.
While 2024 campaign plans swing into action, some Democrat lawmakers have issued concerns about Biden’s reelection hope because of his age. Biden, who is the oldest president in U.S. history at age 80, would remain so if he won reelection in 2024. If he runs for reelection and wins, he will be 86 by the end of his second term.
“Nobody wants to be the one to do something that would undermine the chances of a Democratic victory in 2024,” Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN) told Politico Magazine. “Yet in quiet rooms the conversation is just the opposite — we could be at a higher risk if this path is cleared.”
According to a Friday poll, 57 percent doubted Biden’s mental fitness to serve, while 43 percent said he is mentally fit. Notably, 66 percent of independents had doubts. Thirty-four percent did not.
Follow Wendell Husebø on Twitter @WendellHusebø. He is the author of Politics of Slave Morality.
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