Representative James Clyburn (D., S.C.) on Wednesday floated the idea of a “mini-primary” ahead of the Democratic National Convention for the party to choose an alternative candidate should President Joe Biden withdraw from the race.
Since Biden’s disastrous debate performance last Thursday, speculation has mounted about a potential nominee replacement — one of the top contenders being Vice President Kamala Harris. Asked by CNN anchor Erica Hill whether Harris should automatically receive the nomination or several candidates vie for it in a primary-like setting, Clyburn said he thinks there would be a “mini-primary leading into the convention.”
Prior to the Democratic National Convention in August, the party already plans on holding a virtual roll call to formally nominate Biden in order to ensure he gets on Ohio’s general-election ballot by the state’s statutory deadline. The virtual meeting could take place as early as mid July, with July 21 as a potential date. Clyburn said Democrats can use the virtual roll call to determine the nominee if Biden were to step aside.
“You can actually fashion the process that’s already in place to make it a mini-primary, and I would support that absolutely,” he said. “We can’t close that down, and we should open up everything for the general election.”
A Clyburn spokesperson emphasized that the representative’s answer was in response to a “hypothetical question” during his CNN interview and clarified that he “fully supports” a Biden-Harris ticket.
“It is quite obvious that Congressman Clyburn was responding to a hypothetical question,” spokesperson Brianna Frias told Politico. “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.”
Clyburn, a key ally of Biden, declared his support for Harris on Tuesday in the event of the president’s end to his reelection bid. But as long as he stays in the race, Biden can count on Clyburn’s support. The House Democrat endorsed Biden ahead of the 2020 primary in South Carolina, marking a turning point for the former vice president’s campaign four years ago.
On Sunday, Clyburn dismissed Biden’s debate performance on CNN as a consequence of “preparation overload” amid growing concerns about his viability as a candidate.
“Yes, it was a bad performance,” he said. “I’ve been around these things. I’ve been a part of debate preparations before and I know when I see what I call ‘preparation overload’ and that’s exactly what was going on the other night. I saw Joe Biden grabbing for words and phrases and even numbers that he was loaded up with.”
Clyburn then pointed to Biden’s rally the next day in North Carolina as an example of him appearing more coherent and less frail. The representative said Biden in North Carolina was “free-wheeling and he captivated the audience.”