President Joe Biden’s performance in the presidential debate Thursday night not only stirred panic within the Democratic Party but also provoked questions about whether Biden should be replaced on the ballot.
Politicos and voters alike witnessed the president struggling to counter former President Donald Trump’s attacks and explain his administration’s policy positions clearly, despite Trump’s own issues during the debate.
“Biden did a terrible job,” said Mathew J. Burbank, a political science professor at the University of Utah. “He did not come across as very commanding at all. ... To lose his train of thought was also problematic.”
Burbank speculated that the Biden campaign proposed the debate to challenge criticism from the right that “Donald Trump is vigorous and Joe Biden isn’t.” However, the debate reinforced the existing narrative and refueled the debate over his age.
Could Biden be replaced?
Since the debate took place before the Democratic National Convention, scheduled in August, the idea of replacing Biden on the 2024 ticket is still viable, but it would be a challenging path.
At least 1,976 delegates are required to win the Democratic nomination, and Biden has 3,894. The delegates are expected to vote for Biden unless he decided to step down from running again. So far, the president hasn’t shown any inclination to withdraw his bid for 2024.
Should Biden change his mind — at the behest of his family or the Democratic Party, or all on his own — who would replace him?
Biden could leave it up to convention delegates to pick his replacement, or he could endorse someone, like Vice President Kamala Harris, said Burbank.
“The obvious person here would be the vice presidential candidate. But the reality is, that doesn’t solve Democrats’ problems because Harris’ polling has not been better than Biden’s,” said Burbank.
The list of other potential picks include governors like Gavin Newsom of California, or Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan. Other picks could include congressional lawmakers like Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio or Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota, who made a short-lived run for the presidency this year.
Essentially the candidate would have to be someone who has been vetted for several elected offices and has plenty of name recognition, said Jeremy Pope, a political science professor at Brigham Young University.
“It would also need to be someone who could step in at a moment’s notice,” he said.
But Pope added he isn’t holding his breath, and thinks Democrats will continue on with Biden.
“At this point, my guess is that Biden can continue to do scripted situations pretty well,” Pope said. He noted the president’s energetic State of the Union speech in March that had reignited his party’s faith in him.
“He could give speeches (and) statements, he can give a talk at the fair. He can probably have conversations with voters, so (the Democratic Party) will be tempted to keep going the way things have been going,” he said. If that’s the case, Democrats may try to avoid future debates. Another one is already on the calendar for September.
Politicians pan Biden’s debate performance
Harris, in an appearance with CNN’s Anderson Cooper an hour after the debate, defended Biden, as one would expect a running mate to do. But even Harris admitted the president wasn’t at his best. “It was a slow start, that’s obvious to everyone. I’m not going to debate that point,” Harris said.
She continued her defense of Biden Friday during fundraising stops in Las Vegas and Salt Lake City.
Forward Party co-chair Andrew Yang said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, “Look I debated Joe 7 times in 2020. He’s a different guy in 2024. #SwapJoeOut”
Rep. Burgess Owens told the Deseret News Friday morning he was surprised to see that many were taken aback by Biden’s performance.
“I think that the Democrats have a reason to be concerned because the secret is now out,” the Utah congressman, a Republican, said.
Democrats need to be more considerate about the president, he said. Owens recalled the painful conversation he had with his dad who, the congressman thought, had grown too old to drive and posed a danger on the roads. “He was a remarkably independent person. It was a tough decision,” Owens said. “Yet we have a party that will not have that conversation with the leader of the free world.”
But Owens said he sees a problem with swapping out Biden. “(Democrats) don’t have a very good bench,” Owens said.
“Take a look again at the Republican Party, look at all the different vice president options we have out there,” Owens said. “In every phase of conservatism, there are people that are comparable, articulate themselves, (and) are willing to get up and debate anyone.”