The West Virginia senator had flirted with a White House campaign, possibly on the ticket of the centrist group No Labels, but said on Friday that he would not challenge President Biden.
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Senator Joe Manchin III of West Virginia said in November that he would not run for re-election, dealing a blow to Democrats’ hopes of maintaining Senate control.
Senator Joe Manchin III, the conservative West Virginia Democrat, on Friday announced that he would not seek the White House in 2024, ending months of speculation that he might challenge President Biden as an independent candidate.
“I will not be seeking a third-party run,” he said in a speech in Morgantown, W.Va. “I will not be involved in a presidential run.”
Mr. Manchin, 76, had been the subject of months of public and private guesswork about whether he would seek the presidency as the candidate for No Labels, a centrist group aiming to recruit a third option against Mr. Biden and former President Donald J. Trump.
Mr. Manchin’s decision takes off the table the highest-profile candidate the leaders of No Labels had sought to attract. They had told donors and allies in recent months that they planned to name a Republican to lead their ticket, ostensibly taking Mr. Manchin out of contention, but they have so far not found any takers.
Former Gov. Larry Hogan of Maryland, a moderate Republican, quit the No Labels board in January. After endorsing former Gov. Nikki Haley of South Carolina for president, he announced his own campaign for Senate in Maryland last week.
Carl Hulse contributed reporting.
Reid J. Epstein covers campaigns and elections from Washington. Before joining The Times in 2019, he worked at The Wall Street Journal, Politico, Newsday and The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. More about Reid J. Epstein
Luke Broadwater covers Congress with a focus on congressional investigations. More about Luke Broadwater
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Source: nytimes.com
