(CTN News) – Two sources indicated on Thursday that U.S. Vice President Joe Biden could release a video Tuesday announcing his re-election candidature, setting up a potential rematch with his Republican predecessor Donald Trump.
Biden considers re-election bid amid low approval ratings
On Tuesday, four years to the day after he first announced his 2020 bid, Biden, now 80 years old, will make his declaration. On Thursday, one of the sources expressed concern that the precise time might shift.
On Friday, Biden told reporters, “We’ll announce it relatively soon.” This was about his official candidature announcement. The intention to run again has been stated.
If elected to a second four-year term, Biden would become the oldest person to have lived in the White House at 86.
A Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted on Sunday found that only 39% of Americans approve of his job performance, adding to the difficulties he has faced in gaining public support.
The Democratic National Committee and the White House declined to comment on the announcement’s timing.
For the upcoming presidential election on November 5, 2024, Republicans have not yet chosen a candidate, but polls show that Trump is leading a pack of announced and undeclared Republican contenders that includes Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, former Vice President Mike Pence, and former UN ambassador Nikki Haley.
A March Reuters/Ipsos poll found that while Biden had little significant competition for the Democratic primary, 45% of Democrats said he should not run again in 2024, while 48% thought he should.
Biden faces potential economic headwinds and difficult Senate elections
After 27 months in office, Biden plans to run for reelection based on his accomplishments in office.
Despite a 40-year high in inflation, he has overseen the lowest levels of unemployment since 1969. This includes getting billions of dollars in federal funding approved by Congress to combat the COVID-19 pandemic and for infrastructure.
Potential economic obstacles include a fight in the Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives over raising the country’s $31.4 trillion debt ceiling, which may create a default and tremors on international markets and a recession in the United States.
In 2024, Biden’s Democrats will also have to defend U.S. Senate seats in states that lean Republican, such as West Virginia, Ohio, and Montana. They have a 51-49 majority in that house of parliament.
The legislative agenda of former Vice President Joe Biden has ground to a standstill since the Republicans won control of the House in the midterm elections of 2016.
Recently, Biden has given political speeches outlining the likely themes of a re-election bid, obtained a doctor’s note stating that he is “fit for duty,” urged Democrats to rearrange the party’s primary calendar in a way that would benefit his nomination, and settled on Chicago as the city where he would ostensibly formally become the nominee next year.
Biden’s Record and Challenges in a possible re-election Bid
Next week, Biden will meet with his most successful volunteer fundraisers from his previous campaign. The 2016 U.S. presidential race could be the most expensive in history, making donors crucial.
In addition, they would prove that Biden’s most ardent backers are no longer concerned about his age or chances in a third, challenging presidential campaign.
A 2024 campaign would require him to visit the few critical states throughout the country that are projected to again be competitive, from Arizona to Pennsylvania, in contrast to the mainly virtual 2020 campaign owing to the pandemic.
Trump refused to accept defeat in 2020 despite Biden’s overwhelming victory by a margin of seven million votes, and he blamed widespread electoral fraud.
On January 6, 2021, his followers attacked the U.S. Capitol building to support his allegations, but they could not prevent Congress from certifying Biden’s election.
While praising his leadership during the economic recovery from the global crisis, especially the resilience of the U.S. labor market, Biden will likely bring up these events to sway voters.
Biden has utilized recent political events to blast Trump-aligned “MAGA” Republicans for trying to reverse his legislative triumphs, but he has mostly avoided publicly speaking about Trump’s legal issues.