Clyburn says he would support ‘mini-primary’ ahead of DNC if Biden steps aside

Democratic Rep. Jim Clyburn, a top ally of Joe Biden, said Wednesday that if the president steps aside from the election, he would expect to see a “mini-primary” ahead of the Democratic National Convention with Kamala Harris and Democratic governors vying for the top two spots on the party’s ticket.

Responding to a question on CNN about whether Harris should be the party’s automatic nominee if the president were to step aside or if there should be a “mini-primary” between several candidates, Clyburn (D-S.C.) said: “Well, I think we’re going to have a mini-primary leading into the convention,” describing the virtual roll call needed to appear on the Ohio ballot.

He added, “You can actually fashion the process that’s already in place to make it a mini-primary, and I would support that absolutely. We can't close that down, and we should open up everything for the general election.”

A spokesperson for Clyburn emphasized in a statement to POLITICO that the congressman was answering “a hypothetical question” in his CNN appearance.

“It is quite obvious that Congressman Clyburn was responding to a hypothetical question,” said spokesperson Brianna Frias. “He was not calling for a ‘mini primary.’ Instead, he was explaining the existing process. The Congressman fully supports President Biden at the top of the ticket and it would be irresponsible to report anything otherwise.”

A spokesperson for the Biden campaign declined to comment.

In the aftermath of Biden’s bumbling debate performance, his campaign has emphasized that it was a “bad night” for a president with a strong record. On Tuesday, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre acknowledged that “we get what Americans are feeling. That's why [Biden is] acknowledging he's not a young man, that's why he's acknowledging he's a little slower than he used to be in walking and not as smooth in speaking.”

When pressed by CNN’s Erica Hill as to if there will be an expanded field during the virtual roll call vote ahead of the DNC, Clyburn said “there will definitely be other candidates.”

“My understanding is there are 700 uncommitted delegates and of course there are delegates who are pledged,” Clyburn said. “It would seem to me that any one of these people who aspire to be president, who would like to see a contest taking place — look at those 700 delegates who are now uncommitted and get into the action.”

Clyburn emphasized Tuesday on MSNBC that Democrats “should not in any way do anything to work around Ms. Harris” and “should do everything we can to bolster her, whether she's in second place or at the top of the ticket.” On Wednesday, he doubled down, saying Harris would do “very well,” but that he would be “interested” in hearing from Democratic governors, too.

“If [Harris] were to be the nominee, we would need to have a running mate, a strong running mate,” Clyburn said. “So all this would give us a good opportunity, not just to measure up who would be good to be at the top of the ticket, but also who would be best in second place.”

Clyburn, 84, a top Democrat whose endorsement of Biden was pivotal to his victory in 2020, called the president’s debate performance “concerning” during the interview. Biden honored Clyburn with the Presidential Medal of Freedom — the nation’s highest civilian honor — in May.