Nonpartisan election handicapper Sabato's Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia Center for Politics says two key Midwestern states are moving away from President Joe Biden post-debate, The Hill reported.
Michigan has shifted from "leans Democratic" to "toss-up," while Minnesota has gone from "likely Democratic" to "leans Democratic," wrote Sabato Crystal Ball's managing editor Kyle Kondik.
Biden won Michigan in 2020 by nearly 3 points, and he took Minnesota by 7 points last presidential election cycle.
"One thing that has crystallized for us after the debate is that it may no longer make sense to give Biden the benefit of the doubt. Our working assumption has been that whatever the polls say now, this was shaping up to be another very close election," Kondik wrote in his analysis.
"What Biden needs to do is show that the debate was a fluke, not a reflection of day-to-day reality," he added. "He can only do that by turning in better performances in unscripted settings — performances he may not be able to produce."
The president will be sitting down for a television interview Friday with ABC News' George Stephanopoulos, and will be engaging in a press conference at the NATO summit next week.
Many television pundits and some members of the Democratic Party are saying Biden should drop out of the 2024 race.
Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas said in a statement Tuesday that Biden should "make the painful and difficult decision to withdraw."
The New York Times published an editorial imploring Biden to withdraw from the race. Biden has explained his poor debate performance on being tired after two trips to Europe in June — trips that ended 11 days before the debate in Atlanta.
"For more than a year, Mr. Biden and his aides have repeatedly denied that the president's age has affected his ability to perform his duties," The New York Times wrote recently. "They have repeatedly criticized journalists who raised the issue that large majorities of voters say they believe Mr. Biden is too old to be president."
Biden and his family have insisted he is the best person to defeat Trump, but new polls suggest Vice President Kamala Harris has a better shot. She would be the most likely replacement for Biden, should he withdraw, The Wall Street Journal reported.
"While that path carries risk because Harris' poll numbers are nearly as lackluster as Biden's, she is popular enough among Democrats — particularly among women and Black voters—that casting her aside could cause resentment and division within the party," the Journal wrote.
Peter Malbin ✉
Peter Malbin, a Newsmax writer, covers news and politics. He has 30 years of news experience, including for the New York Times, New York Post and Newsweek.com.
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