Rep. Dean Phillips to challenge Biden in Democratic primary
- Rep. Dean Phillips, D-Minn. is launching a 2024 presidential bid
- Phillips has voted with President Joe Biden 100% of the time
- Biden also faces a primary challenge from Marianne Williamson
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(NewsNation) — Minnesota U.S. Rep. Dean Phillips will enter the 2024 presidential race Friday, challenging incumbent Joe Biden in the Democratic primary.
Phillips, a 54-year-old who was first elected to Congress in 2018 when he defeated incumbent Republican Erik Paulsen in Minnesota’s 3rd District, has scheduled a campaign announcement Friday morning at the New Hampshire statehouse in Concord.
Phillips will speak to NewsNation’s Elizabeth Vargas in an interview Friday at 6 p.m. ET on “Elizabeth Vargas Reports.”
“I think President Biden has done a spectacular job for our country,” Phillips said in an interview with CBS News on Thursday. “But it’s not about the past. This is an election about the future.”
According to FiveThirtyEight’s vote tracker, Philips has voted in line with Biden’s positions 100% of the time.
Biden’s reelection campaign and the Democratic National Committee have declined to address Phillips’ possible run. But White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre noted Phillips’ voting record and said, “We appreciate the congressman’s almost 100% support of this president.”
Biden is also facing a primary challenge from Marianne Williamson, who also ran as a Democrat in the 2020 presidential primary. She is currently polling at 9%, according to a RealClearPolitics average.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is running as an independent after first announcing his candidacy as a Democrat. He was polling anywhere between 10% and 20% before he switched his party affiliation, according to RealClearPolitics.
Biden’s polling average has increased 10 percentage points since then.
While Phillips is highly unlikely to beat Biden, a run would offer a symbolic challenge to national Democrats trying to project the idea that there is no reason to doubt the president’s electability — even as many Americans question whether the 80-year-old Biden should serve another term.
Biden has long cast himself as uniquely qualified to beat Donald Trump again after his 2020 win, and top Democrats have lined up behind him while also positioning themselves for a future primary run.
Phillips has already missed the deadline to enter Nevada’s primary and is little known nationally. But he argues Biden may not be able to beat Trump again, telling CBS News that polling suggests, “We’re going to be facing an emergency next November.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
