WASHINGTON — Democratic Party chairmen in seven key battleground states reaffirmed their support for President Joe Biden on Sunday and urged their fellow Democrats to focus on defeating former President Donald Trump as many in the party try to urge Biden to back down.
In a joint open letter to Democrats obtained by USA Today, the party leaders argued that Democrats have a unified message of “freedom, democracy, and an economy that works for working people” that can defeat President Trump’s “MAGA threats of anti-abortion, dictatorship, and perks for billionaires.”
“Yet right now, many voters are not hearing that voice from our party. We understand the anxiety. But the best antidote to political anxiety is action,” they wrote. “If we all use our voices to contrast the Democratic vision (starting with the Biden-Harris ticket) with the MAGA nightmare, we will win.”
The letter was signed by state Democratic Party chairs Ben Wikler of Wisconsin, Lavora Barnes of Michigan, Sharif Street of Pennsylvania, Anderson Clayton of North Carolina, Nikema Williams of Georgia, Yolanda Bejarano of Arizona and Danielle Monroe Moreno of Nevada. These seven states will likely decide the outcome of the 2024 election.
Their appeal comes as Biden finds himself at odds with Democratic congressional leaders, lawmakers and donors who are convinced he has no chance of beating Trump in the November election.
Alarmed by Biden’s dwindling approval ratings and dismal performance in last month’s debate, 35 Democratic senators publicly called on the 81-year-old Biden to stop campaigning so the party can select a new, younger candidate.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries have privately expressed concern that Biden’s candidacy could hurt Democrats’ chances of winning the Senate and the House of Representatives. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has also expressed similar concerns about Biden’s prospects.
Biden has repeatedly vowed that he has no plans to withdraw from the race.
“We know tough elections,” the seven party leaders wrote in the letter. “We have all experienced the ‘poll coasters,’ the ups and downs, the moments that seemed to change everything only to be replaced a month later by another moment that changed everything. We have all seen moments when Democrats were more focused on arguing with each other than on defeating Republicans.”
They added that Democrats have prevailed in such moments “by refocusing on what each of us can do at every level to move forward toward victory.”
Democratic National Committee Chairman Jaime Harrison has also remained a staunch Biden supporter amid a growing number of Democratic critics of the president.
Biden won six of the seven states mentioned in the letter, except for North Carolina, which his campaign is spending heavily to flip. But most polls this year have shown Biden trailing Trump in all seven of those states, especially in Arizona, Nevada, Georgia and North Carolina.
“As we enter the final 100 days, President Biden has proven that if we all work hard, we can defeat President Donald Trump,” the party leaders’ letter said.
They pointed to three factors that they believe would support Biden: “voters know Joe” and see him as a “fighter for working people,” communities can point to infrastructure and other projects by a Biden administration, and a majority of American voters support Biden’s policies, including protecting abortion access and expanding Medicare and Social Security.
“To voters, the contrast between these two visions of the future couldn’t be clearer,” they wrote. “So it is the Democratic Party’s task to bring the choice between these two statues to the nation’s attention. As state party leaders, we are dedicating our time to the work that will have the greatest impact on our victory.”
Joey Garrison can be reached at X or on Twitter: @joeygarrison.
