North Carolinians discuss next steps, who will be on ballot following Biden’s withdrawal?

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) – President Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the 2024 presidential race is shaking up an already chaotic election season.

The big question now is what’s next or who’s next? Biden is endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris as the next Democratic nominee. This gives her a leg up but doesn’t guarantee a nomination. If the last few weeks have taught us anything, it’s that things can change very quickly.

“The delegates at that convention are the most important people right now in American electoral politics,” said Chris Cooper, political science professor at Western Carolina University. “Those are the ones who ultimately are going to get to decide who the democratic nominee for president is going to be.”

It’s something we’ve rarely ever seen before in modern American politics –an incumbent president not seeking re-election. The news comes one week after an assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump and four months before a pivotal election.

“What’s going to happen now is this battle to see who’s the candidate and also then who is that candidates, vice presidential candidate,” said Cooper.

The Democratic Women of Mecklenburg County are ready to endorse Harris as the pick.

“I understand that we’re sort of in uncharted waters with this, but Kamala Harris has done a fantastic job as vice president and she has Joe Biden’s endorsement,” said Jane Whitley, president of the Democratic Women of Mecklenburg County. “That is who we need to get behind.”

Cooper said having Harris on the ticket could make for a smoother transition.

“It’s a little bit easier pill to swallow, I think for a lot of Democrats to say, hey, I already voted for this person on a ticket,” he said. “There’s obviously also the piece that she is the vice presidential candidate, so people assume if the president gets incapacitated, she’s the one who would take over.”

Cooper said some other names that could come up either as presidential or vice presidential candidates are California Governor Gavin Newsom, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg and possibly North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper to name a few.

“If they are able to coalesce soon around a candidate, my guess is they’ll get some massive fundraising bumps,” said Cooper.

As for the Republican Party, Biden’s announcement changes things for it too.

The State’s GOP Chairman, Jason Simmons, put out the following statement:

“Today’s announcement is an acknowledgment of what the American people already knew: Joe Biden is not capable of being President. It also exposes the craven political expediency of the Democrat Party.

They have no message, nothing to offer voters, and have benched Joe Biden solely to keep political power. As we saw at the RNC, President Trump and Senator JD Vance lead a united Republican Party that will deliver for the American people once elected on November 5.”

For that to happen, Cooper said Republicans will need a new strategy.

“Donald Trump has been running against Joe Biden and he knows how to run against Joe Biden,” said Cooper. “He knows the cases to make, to run against Joe Biden. Certainly, they have to be thinking through how do we run against all these other possibilities?”

Cooper said delegates could wait until the Democratic National Convention in August to rally around a candidate. His best guess is they will make their endorsements before then.

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