Joe Manchin Announces Decision On Presidential Bid

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) announced Friday that he will not run for president in the 2024 election.

Manchin, who previously announced he would not seek reelection in the U.S. Senate, had mulled a presidential candidacy for months.

The West Virginia Democrat was considered a candidate to run on a third-party No Labels ticket.

Manchin mentioned Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) as a possible running mate.

However, those plans will not come to fruition.

“I will not be seeking a third-party run. I will not be involved in a presidential run,” Manchin announced.

“I will be involved in making sure that we secure a president that has the knowledge and has the passion and has the ability to bring this country together,” he added.

#BREAKING: Senator Joe Manchin is not running for president https://t.co/Y22jcVgKPK pic.twitter.com/TwGkWWGzTp

— The Hill (@thehill) February 16, 2024

NBC News reports:

Manchin, 76, had said last November that he would not seek re-election to his Senate seat this year, leading to speculation that he would run for the White House as an independent or as a third-party candidate.

The centrist senator also appeared at events hosted by No Labels, the political group trying to mount a bipartisan, third-party presidential campaign.

In a statement following Manchin’s announcement, former Connecticut Sen. Joe Liberman, former North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory and civil rights leader Benjamin Chavis Jr., the national co-chairs of No Labels, said they were speaking with “several exceptional leaders” about a possible presidential ticket.

As recently as Thursday, Manchin was refusing to rule out a White House bid, floating Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, and former Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, as potential running mates.

Democrats feared a Manchin candidacy would have pulled votes away from President Joe Biden and boost former President Donald Trump, the 2024 Republican frontrunner, in a general election.

WATCH:

WATCH: Senator Joe Manchin says he would pick Mitt Romney as his Vice President if he ran for President on an independent ticket.

Would you vote for this ticket? 🤔 pic.twitter.com/JNHWs7y2UM

— Proud Elephant 🇺🇸🦅 (@ProudElephantUS) February 15, 2024

Sen. Joe Manchin will announce that he will not run for president, sources say. https://t.co/rk2vwiaH9V

— NBC News (@NBCNews) February 16, 2024

Per Axios:

Manchin’s announcement to forgo an independent bid, as well as Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan’s decision to run for the Senate, will bring renewed scrutiny on former Utah Governor Jon Huntsman and his plans for 2024, Axios’ Hans Nichols writes.

Huntsman participated in a No Labels town hall with Manchin in July in New Hampshire. He has yet to announce a decision about a potential third-party bid.

When Manchin indicated a presidential bid as a third-party candidate, the centrist group No Labels backed him.

In a statement Friday, the group’s national co-chairs former Sen. Joe Lieberman, Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr. and former North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory said they welcome Manchin’s efforts to strengthen “a movement for America’s commonsense majority.”

“No Labels is currently speaking with several exceptional leaders about serving on the presidential Unity ticket,” they said, adding that they’ll announce in the coming weeks whether they’ll lend their support to a ticket.

“No Labels is NOW on the ballot in 13 states: Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Maine, Mississippi, Nevada, North Carolina, Oregon, South Dakota and Utah,” No Labels announced in January.

“We are currently active – meaning we have already filed for ballot access or are actively gathering signatures – in 14 others,” they added.