Joe Manchin Gives Answer On Potential White House Bid After Months Of Speculation

Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) gave a cryptic answer when asked about a potential White House bid, on one hand stating that he does not want to be a “spoiler” in 2024 while also suggesting that he is still considering a third-party run.

Manchin has long served as a swing vote in the Senate as he hails from one of the most pro-Trump states in the country. Since his first election in 2010, Manchin has voted with Republicans on a number of important matters while siding with Democrats in others.

His support for President Biden’s massive infrastructure packages have causes his support to slip, however. He recently announced that he will be retiring at the end of the year rather than face a tough re-election battle.

Due to his largely middle of the road voting record, Manchin’s name has long been tossed around as a potential third party White House option in 2024.

“Let me just say I have never been a spoiler, nor will I ever be a spoiler on any election,” Manchin said during an appearance on Fox News Sunday. “If I’m involved, I’m involved to win. But to be a spoiler for the sake of throwing the election one way or the other, I would never do,” he added.

Manchin did not rule out the possibility of launching a last-minute campaign for president, though he did tell Fox News’ Shannon Bream that he still wants to survey the election landscape until Super Tuesday. “For any third-party attempt, it would define itself by, let’s say, Super Tuesday. If there’s going to be any movement whatsoever,” he said.

“I think you start looking after Super Tuesday to find out what the lay of the land is going to be. A lot can change in the next two months. So let’s wait and see,” the outgoing senator went on to say.

Manchin recently travelled to New Hampshire where he launched Americans Together, a nationwide tour aimed to gauging interest in a potential run.