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West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin said he is considering launching a presidential campaign, moving closer toward a bid that could shake up the 2024 election.
“I will do anything I can to help my country, and you’re saying, ‘Does that mean you would consider it?’ Absolutely,” Manchin, a Democrat, said on Wednesday in an interview with NBC News.
The comments are the strongest signal Manchin has sent that he could mount an independent presidential run, a move likely to pull support from US President Joe Biden’s base of voters.
Manchin, 76, is set go on a cross-country tour to listen to Americans’ concerns and said he would have to figure out if there is voter appetite for a moderate candidate before deciding whether to run. He announced last week he will not seek re-election to the Senate.
The senator is a Democrat representing a state where former US president Donald Trump beat Biden by nearly 40 percentage points in 2020.
Manchin’s centrist politics would likely mean he could pull support from moderate Democrats, Republicans dissatisfied with their likely nominee, Trump, and independents.
Manchin is also involved with the No Labels, a centrist policy group laying the groundwork for a possible third-party campaign for president.
Democrats have criticised the No Labels effort, saying it would improve Trump’s chances of winning the White House in 2024.
What are Trump’s plans if he returns to the White House?
What are Trump’s plans if he returns to the White House?
“I’m totally, absolutely scared to death that Donald Trump would become president again,” Manchin said in the interview.
“I’ve never been a spoiler in my life of anything, and I would never be a spoiler now.”
A Manchin candidacy could capitalise on the growing number of “double haters” – voters who are dissatisfied with both Biden and Trump – which now stands at 19 per cent of the electorate in swing states, according to the Bloomberg News/Morning Consult poll released last week.
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