Speculation is heating up again over whether President Joe Biden will seek another term in office, according to The Hill.
Biden, 79, is faced with questions about his age and his plunging popularity in polls. He is also looking at the possibility of Democrats losing control of both the Senate and House in the upcoming midterms.
A poll released in early May shows that a majority of voters don't think Biden should run again in 2024 and that, in a rematch with former President Donald Trump, he would lose 50% to 36%.
The survey by Rasmussen Reports and the Heartland Institute found that 61% of likely U.S. voters think Biden should not seek reelection in 2024. Just 28% say Biden should run for a second term, and 11% were undecided.
Biden has informed former President Barack Obama that he intends to seek reelection in 2024, The Hill reported. Biden "wants to run, and he's clearly letting everyone know," said one source familiar with the conversations between Biden and Obama.
Still, that hasn't stopped speculation about Biden's political future, particularly with the midterms looming.
"If he's weakened, the sharks will be circling the tank," said one Democrat strategist who asked not to be identified.
The Hill noted that everywhere a person goes in the nation's capital are people wondering if Biden will run again.
"I fully expect for him to run again," said Democrat strategist Jim Manley, who worked as an adviser to the late Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. "But I wouldn't be surprised if there aren't a bunch of Democrats and their staffers watching very carefully as the weeks and months go by."
The Hill noted that if Biden decides to be a one-term president, his obvious successor would be Vice President Kamala Harris.
However, her missteps in office and problems as a 2020 presidential candidate have sparked questions whether she could win, the news outlet said.
"I'm not so sure whether any Dems will defer to the VP if President Biden decides not to run," Manley said. "If he decides not to run, I don't think she has a lock on it."
The Hill noted a number of other potential candidates, including Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, and Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont are waiting in the wings.
But for now, Biden insists he is running again.
Celinda Lake, one of Biden's pollsters during the last presidential election, said: "He has said he is running, so I think he is."
Jeffrey Rodack ✉
Jeffrey Rodack, who has nearly a half century in news as a senior editor and city editor for national and local publications, has covered politics for Newsmax for nearly seven years.
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