Manchin ‘seriously’ considered leaving party

Senator Joe Manchin III, a centrist West Virginia Democrat who has at times sparred with his party, said Thursday that he has “seriously” considered leaving the Democratic Party ahead of the 2024 election.

In a Thursday interview with West Virginia MetroNews host Hoppy Kercheval, Manchin said he would “think very seriously” about leaving his party to become an independent. His comments come amid speculation that he could mount an independent bid for president in the 2024 election, challenging President Biden.

Manchin told Kercheval that he’s been thinking about becoming an independent “for quite some time.”

Manchin said he thinks that, because of partisanship, the Republican and Democratic “brands” have become “so bad.”

“It’s not the Democrats in West Virginia; it’s the Democrats in Washington,” he said. “. . . You’ve heard me say a million times, I’m not a Washington Democrat.”

Manchin then said he has “absolutely” thought about becoming an independent.

He said he thinks that “the business of politics has gotten so, so absolutely toxic” and that Biden and other politicians should take “a balanced approach to how we govern and the policies that we make.”

“It shouldn’t be catering to an extreme left or an extreme right,” he said. “And we see both of that happening. It’s not normal, what’s happening. You and I never experienced this growing up, this toxic atmosphere where you have to be mortal enemies with the other side.”

Manchin’s statements came weeks after he headlined an event held by No Labels, a bipartisan group that has said it would consider offering a thirdparty presidential ticket if the 2024 race becomes a rematch between Biden and former president Donald Trump. Manchin’s participation in the event stoked speculation that he is considering a third-party bid in the next presidential race.

No Labels has said it will only offer a third-party option “under the proper environmental conditions,” and that the ticket would probably feature a Democrat and a Republican in presidential and vice-presidential slots.

Manchin, meanwhile, has not ruled out a presidential bid. The three-term senator, who is up for reelection in 2024, told NBC News’s “Meet the Press” that he won’t make any final decision on whether he will run for reelection, or the White House, “until the end of the year.”