Biden's rocky debate performance prompts new calls for Whitmer to step in

President Joe Biden's rocky debate performance Thursday prompted a fresh round of calls for him to step aside and clear the field for another Democratic nominee to face former President Donald Trump this fall. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer once again found her name floated by pundits as a top contender for a last-minute presidential bid.

During a 90-minute debate, Biden sounded hoarse and stumbled over some of his answers.

"I wish Biden would reflect on this debate performance and then announce his decision to withdraw from the race, throwing the choice of Democratic nominee to the convention," wrote New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof on the social media platform X. He listed Whitmer among the group of Democrats he said could defeat Trump. A flurry of national coverage dissecting the debate and the speculation that ensued over Biden's nomination also mentioned Whitmer as a possible substitute.

Former Michigan Democratic Party Chair Mark Brewer dismissed the possibility that Whitmer and not Biden would end up as the party's presidential nominee this year. "I think it's a fantasy. It's incredibly far-fetched," he said.

Whitmer has repeatedly denied any interest in a presidential run this year. When asked Friday about the possibility Whitmer would run if Biden were to step aside, Helen Hare — a spokesperson for the Whitmer PAC supporting the President's reelection campaign — wrote in an email to the Free Press: "Joe Biden is our nominee and the Governor is proud to support him."

Biden has repeatedly said democracy is on the line in November. Now, some Democrats point to those high stakes as a reason to replace him.

"We need a formidable opponent to beat Trump, because I believe he is a malignant bully and is extremely dangerous to our democracy," Hazel Park resident Faith Allen wrote in a Letter to the Editor of the Free Press, immediately after the debate.

"There are many worthy Democrats who could replace Biden at the Democratic National Convention in August, including our own Gov. Gretchen Whitmer."

Some of the reporting and post-debate chatter mused that top Democratic figures and Biden allies such as former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., or U.S. Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C. may reach the president to talk about the future of his campaign.

Political challenges for last-minute campaign abound

At this late point in the election cycle, the nomination is akin to a "poisoned chalice," said Adrian Hemond, CEO of Grassroots Midwest, a Lansing-based strategic consulting firm. There is no candidate who could plausibly replace Biden with the national profile needed to make up for lost time to campaign, he said.

"Would any fill-in candidate be able to create a viable presidential campaign this late in the game, especially for the first time?" asked John Sellek, CEO of Lansing-based Harbor Strategic Public Affairs in an email. "Even if given access to all the national machinery now, for any of the fill-ins, it would be a little like a top college player trying to replace Jared Goff in the 3rd quarter."

For the field to open up after Democratic voters across the U.S. have cast their primary ballots and caucused, Biden would have to step aside. An effort to replace Biden without his support seems nearly impossible with Biden having already secured enough delegates to win his party's nomination.

Brewer said a convention fight over the nominee with Democratic disunity displayed on national television would severely hurt the party heading into the fall and come with racial and gender tensions if the party were to pass over Vice President Kamala Harris — the first Black woman to hold the position — for someone else.

"I think it's an overreaction," he said of those arguing Biden should leave the race. While Biden performed poorly, Democrats shouldn't hit the panic button, Brewer said.

Entertaining a scenario in which Biden bows out and opens the field for another Democrat to run, it's not clear Whitmer would even raise her hand. While Whitmer has said previously she has no interest in ever running for president, she has left the door open to the possibility in the future in more recent interviews.

Whitmer has taken a leading role in Biden's campaign as one of his top surrogates. She's a national co-chair for his campaign and has raised money to help reelect Biden.

While some took to social media during the Biden-Trump debate to highlight the president's fumbles, Whitmer's posts celebrated Biden's policies and blasted Trump for celebrating the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to overturn a national right to abortion and the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol when his supporters attempted to stop Congress from certifying the election results.

The Presidential Election in Michigan: President Biden's bad debate night may not have changed many Michigan voters' minds

Michigan voters weigh in on Whitmer

Saginaw resident Terrilyn Collins said Friday she was "shook" by the debate and felt the performance of both Biden, whom she supports, and Trump, was horrible.

But Collins, 65, who designs and makes clothing, feels calls to replace Biden are premature.

"If they decide he is not going to be the nominee, who is?" asked Collins, who believes Harris, the vice president, does not have the broad appeal to defeat Trump.

If Biden were to step aside voluntarily, the Democrats' best bet would be California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Collins said, believing Newsom would be able to "call Trump out on everything."

Collins said she loves Whitmer, and while she is not sexist, she feels much of America is and Whitmer would face problems similar to those 2016 presidential candidate and former U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton faced as a smart woman many men didn't like. "She would be a better choice for vice president," Collins said of Whitmer.

But Grosse Pointe resident Jacquelyn Horgan, who lived in California from 2018 to 2022, most of that time under Newsom, before returning to her native Michigan, said high taxes were among the reasons she left that state. She prefers Whitmer to Newsom based on her pragmatism, approach to budgeting, and her bipartisan appeal. Newsom has a certain elitism about him while Whitmer is more representative of the middle class, said Horgan, 35, who works in clinical research for a university.

Horgan watched Thursday's debate and said she was concerned by Biden's shaky performance. She was not prepared to say Friday that Biden should step aside. But if he were to decide to do so on his own, Whitmer, who first campaigned in Michigan on a pledge to "fix the damn roads," would be at or near the top of Horgan's list to replace him, she said.

Horgan took to Instagram after the debate.

"Give us Big (Gretch)," she wrote. "The dang roads are good enough."

Contact Clara Hendrickson: chendrickson@freepress.com or 313-296-5743. Follow her on X, previously called Twitter, @clarajanehen .

Looking for more on Michigan’s elections this year? Check out our voter guide , subscribe to our elections newsletter and always feel free to share your thoughts in a letter to the editor .

Contact Paul Egan: 517-372-8660 or pegan@freepress.com. Follow him on X, @paulegan4.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Biden's rocky debate performance prompts new calls for Whitmer to step in