Joe Manchin Says He Won’t Run for President

Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, a 76-year-old centrist Democrat, said on Friday that he won’t run for president, ending months of speculation over whether he would mount a long-shot bid for the White House this year.

“I will not be seeking a third-party run, I will not be involved in a presidential run…I just don’t think it’s the right time,” he said. 

Manchin, who isn’t running for re-election in the Senate, has participated in events hosted by No Labels, a group that is laying the groundwork to potentially run an alternative candidate if the 2024 presidential race becomes a Donald Trump—Joe Biden rematch, as now appears likely to be the case.

Manchin made the announcement in a speech Friday at West Virginia University in Morgantown, W.Va. In the speech, he complained that the democratic institutions in the country were breaking down amid extreme partisanship and the parties were no longer able to work together to solve the country’s problems.

While Manchin was seen as having little chance at winning the presidency, Democrats feared that a run could potentially draw voters away from Biden in key battleground states and tip the races into Trump’s column.