SEATTLE— President Joe Biden has made it clear he’s running for a second term, arguing he’s the best bet the Democrats have to once again beat Donald Trump.
His supporters have brushed off concerns over his low approval ratings and advanced age. As the incumbent president, Biden, 81, is an almost surefire lock to be handed the Democratic nomination next summer.
Still, some Washington Democrats are seeking a choice — or, a backup plan — just in case.
They’re pushing to get Minnesota Congressman Dean Phillips on Washington’s Democratic presidential primary ballot on March 12.
“The problem isn’t just that Biden is low in the polls. It’s that he is very, very old and a lot can happen in six months,” said Richard May, a Blaine city council member who is leading the volunteer effort. “This isn’t about negativity. It’s good to have options.”
The hurdles to get Phillips on the ballot in Washington are not high. His supporters just need to gather 1,000 signatures from registered voters by Jan. 5 and pay a $2,500 fee, according to the state Democratic Party.
May said volunteers have already gathered more than 1,000 signatures, but are still getting some more to make sure they have a cushion in case some are invalid.
Under state law, it’s up to the Republican and Democratic parties to tell the state by Jan. 9 which candidates will be placed on the March 12 presidential primary ballots. (Voters can choose to participate in one party’s primary or the other — but not both — by signing an attestation declaring their party preference.)
Phillips, 54, launched a longshot bid for the Democratic presidential nomination in October after months of publicly calling for a primary challenger for Biden. His campaign has been derided by some Biden loyalists, with Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens, a member of Biden’s national campaign advisory board, labeling it “an attention-seeking stunt.”
But supporters like May say Democratic voters deserve options. Without alternatives on state ballots, if Biden were to drop out of the race unexpectedly, it could be left to the Democratic National Committee to pick a nominee — perhaps Vice President Kamala Harris, or other obviously ambitious Democrats such as California Gov. Gavin Newsom.
That possibility of DNC backroom dealing deciding the party’s 2024 nominee disturbs May, who was a delegate to the 2016 Democratic National Convention as a supporter of Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. He was among the Sanders delegates who walked out of the Philadelphia convention hall in protest as then-Sen. Hillary Clinton was chosen as the Democratic nominee.
While Phillips has long been known as a moderate, he has recently endorsed progressive policies such as Medicare for All. May said he likes Phillips’ policy ideas and the fact that he flipped a historically Republican congressional district in 2018.
“The bills he has been sponsoring are forward-thinking and bold and really good,” May said.
Some states have made it more difficult for would-be Biden challengers to participate in primaries or caucuses ballot, with Florida, for example, canceling its Democratic primary altogether.
Such obstacles haven’t been erected in Washington.
Shasti Conrad, the state Democratic Party chair, said Phillips will be submitted for the ballot if his campaign gets the required signatures.
Conrad said she’s also heard rumblings about self-help author Marianne Williamson trying to get on Washington’s ballot, but hasn’t been contacted by anyone with the campaign.
On the Republican side, some in Washington have backed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and have jumped through the hoops required to get him on the state’s ballot along with Trump, said Reagan Dunn, the Metropolitan King County Councilmember who is among the local DeSantis supporters. The GOP ballot qualifications include getting a dozen signatures from members of the party’s state committee and paying a $20,000 filing fee, Dunn said.
A state GOP spokesperson did not respond by Wednesday afternoon with which other candidates might qualify for the ballot here, though former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley’s recent polling and fundraising surge would make her another likely contender.
Washington’s presidential primary could be largely irrelevant by the time it rolls around.
The state’s March 12 vote will come one week after Super Tuesday’s contests in 16 states, so it’s possible both parties’ nominations will largely be sewn up by then.
If he loses steam in early voting states, Phillips is likely to drop out and get behind Biden for the Democratic nomination.
“It’s entirely possible he won’t earn a single delegate,” May acknowledged.
