Republican pollsters said Democrats would be better off holding an open convention rather than fielding President Biden and Vice President Harris as their nominees.
Whit Ayers, founder of North Star Opinion Research, told NewsNation’s “The Hill Sunday” that neither Biden nor Harris will be able to beat former President Trump in next fall’s presidential election. His comments came after Biden’s lackluster performance in last month’s debate, which raised concerns within Democrats about whether he was the best candidate to field.
“Democrats would be much better off holding an open convention and sending a newcomer to the floor who can be a credible president,” Ayers said Sunday. “I think that’s much better than sticking with either Biden or Kamala Harris, both of whom are almost certain to lose to Donald Trump.”
After moderator Chris Styrewalt suggested that fielding a new face could be “risky” for the Democratic Party, Ayers emphasized that presidential candidates have always been chosen at national conventions, which run from August 19 to 22 in Chicago and where Biden is expected to be formally nominated as the party’s candidate.
“We’ve used conventions to nominate presidential candidates before. The Democratic Convention had the largest audience ever for a party convention and it may even advance someone America has never known before who may actually be a very good president,” he said.
Ayers began the interview by adding that it doesn’t matter whether Biden or Harris is the Democrats’ preferred candidate, the vice president is “just as weak as Joe Biden.”
With the general election just months away, a small number of Democrats have called on Biden to step aside and let someone else take the reins. Biden and his campaign have stressed he has no plans to drop out of the race and have denied concerns about his age and ability to do the job.
Biden reiterated his claim to be the best candidate for president in an interview with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos on Friday, saying he felt “exhausted” ahead of last month’s debate but noting that his performance did not indicate any major health issues.
“I don’t think there’s anybody more qualified to be president or to win this election than me,” he said at one point.
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