Bernie Sanders’ campaign is quietly supporting California congressman Ro Khanna for the 2024 election if President Joe Biden doesn’t run for a re-election, according to Politico.
Biden has said multiple times that he will run for re-election in 2024 if he is in good health, according to the New York Magazine. However, a recent Wall Street Journal poll shows that about half of registered voters don’t expect the current president, who is now 79, will run for a second term.
At the same time as the split public opinion, prominent figures from Sanders’ presidential campaign are pushing Khanna for a 2024 presidential bid. Jeff Weaver, former presidential campaign manager for Sanders, and Mark Longabaugh, a senior adviser to Sanders in his previous bid in 2016, have both encouraged Khanna to consider a campaign in the case of the current president does not run, Politico reported.
“I think Ro would be a very effective candidate,” Longabaugh said to Politico. “This guy has a message that’s very powerful. … Ro is basically saying, ‘Is there a way in which we can reconstruct the economy so that all of the wealth is not just being generated on the East Coast, West Coast, or out of my congressional district?’”
However, Khanna has denied the claims of having the intention of running for president for 2024, Yahoo News reports.
“I’m not running in 2024,” Khanna said in an interview with Politico. “I fully expect the president to run and intend to support him strongly. If for some reason he didn’t, that would be very disappointing, but there are a number of other candidates who I think I could get behind who would make sure that the Democrats beat Donald Trump.”
Khanna didn’t exclude the possibility of a campaign in 2028.
“After the ’24 cycle will be a time where America will start to look to the future,” Khanna said according to Politico.
Politico said that Khanna has presented himself like a potential presidential candidate. He has co-chaired Sanders’ 2020 presidential campaign. Khanna also has a large range of connections in Silicon Valley and has invested in tech jobs in multiple states.
Khanna is also known for supporting many of Sanders’ policy proposals, including Medicare for All and free college, according to SFGate. Some think that this will significantly help Khanna to be a great contender.
“I think he would have tremendous appeal among people who supported Bernie. I do, absolutely, 100 percent,” said Weaver to Politico. “He has a thoughtful take on the economy, which I think a lot of working-class people that Democrats have had difficulty reaching would hear.”
Neil Makhija, executive director of the civic group Indian American Impact, said to Politico if Khanna was to take the bid for 2024, that Khanna, who also is a son of Indian immigrants, could gain the financial support of the Indian American community and appeal to the immigrant population.
“Ro has a clear vision of both protecting America’s status as a multiracial democracy and bringing economic opportunity from the coasts to every corner of the country,” Makhija said. “Since Covid and the changing nature of remote work, an honest, realistic economic message for rural America is possible and the kind of critical message we need from a national leader.”
AsAmNews has Asian America in its heart. We’re an all-volunteer effort of dedicated staff and interns. Check out our new Instagram account. Go to our Twitter feed and Facebook page for more content. Please consider interning, joining our staff, or submitting a story, or making a contribution.
photo of Khanna found here: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ro_Khanna_-Bernie_Sanders_rally-_1.jpg
Photo by Σ: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:%CE%A3