President Joe Biden is reportedly gearing up to declare a 2024 re-election bid after months of speculation about whether the 80-year-old Democrat had another campaign in him.
The Hill cited multiple sources reporting Saturday that Biden’s intentions could be made public sometime in the next several weeks, and a formal announcement could follow in April. Some insiders emphasized February as a month to watch, around the time of the State of the Union, though the report stressed that the timing depends on an invite from the speaker of the House to address Congress.
“I think it’s all about timing at this point,” one Biden ally told the news outlet. “It seems like he’s all in. It’s not really ‘if’ he runs anymore.”
If Biden does run again, he might find himself in a general election rematch against former President Donald Trump, who announced another bid for the White House in November.
The report made no mention of Vice President Kamala Harris, though Biden said during a news conference nearly one year ago that he was committed to her as his running mate in 2024 if he ran for reelection.
Biden’s team of advisers has already begun to put together a strategy for a likely 2024 campaign, including plans to expand his reach to supporters on digital platforms such as TikTok and WhatsApp, according to The Washington Post.
Biden began 2023 with a rare joint appearance with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) to tout the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure package the president signed into law last year. As of Friday, Biden had a 43.5% approval rating, the highest he’s reached in a year, according to FiveThirtyEight.
Still, Biden faces multiple hurdles in the two years that remain in his term, including an economy that has struggled with inflation. He headed to the southern border on Sunday while facing criticism from Democrats and Republicans over his immigration policies. With Republicans taking over the House, the foreign business activity of Biden’s son Hunter is poised to take center stage amid a slew of investigations.
And then there are concerns about Biden’s age and mental acuity, which have dogged him since his 2020 campaign, even among those in his own party. Biden is already the oldest person to be president.
Noting Biden would be closer to 90 than 80 by the time he would finish a prospective second term, former Obama adviser David Axelrod was quoted by The New York Times last summer saying the president’s age would become a “major issue.”