Democratic Minnesota Rep. Dean Phillips, who has mounted a primary challenge to President Joe Biden, is set to submit challenges against state Democratic parties after he was left off their 2024 ballots, Semafor reported Thursday.
Phillips jumped into the Democratic primary field in late October, citing the need for Biden alternatives in 2024 and concerns over the president’s age and electability.
The congressman likely won’t appear on primary ballots in Florida, Tennessee and North Carolina, prompting Phillips to file “implementation challenges” against the state Democratic parties, as well as the Democratic National Committee (DNC), according to Semafor.
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“Unilaterally taking away the right of rank and file Democrats, including a disproportionate number of Black voters demanding a more affordable America, is reprehensible,” Phillips told Semafor in a statement. “If Joe Biden is the best candidate to defeat Donald Trump and lead us to a safer, more affordable future, let him compete for that privilege without his supporters suppressing and disenfranchising millions of voters.”
The Florida Democratic Party voted in late October to only put Biden on their ballot, meaning no primary election would be held, according to Semafor. Nikki Fried, chair of the state party, told Semafor ahead of the vote that they hadn’t heard from Phillips.
North Carolina Democratic Party Chair Anderson Clayton listed only Biden to appear on the primary ballot in a letter to the state board of elections on Dec. 1, according to Semafor.
Phillips submitted the necessary signatures to make the Tennessee primary on Dec. 5, but Secretary of State Tre Hargett announced the same day that only Biden would appear on the ballot while the congressman’s filing petition needed to be verified, according to Semafor. Tennessee Democratic Party Chairman Hendrell Remus insisted to the outlet that only Biden had reached out to them prior to a Nov. 11 meeting, during which they decided to submit only him to appear on the primary ballot.
Phillips’ team met in Washington, D.C., with the DNC to go over the primary rules on Thursday.
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The DNC is also implementing its new primary calendar, backed by Biden, moving up the South Carolina Primary in 2024 and pushing back the New Hampshire primary and Iowa Caucuses. New Hampshire isn’t budging on its first-in-the-nation primary date, while the Iowa Democratic Party has agreed to hold its caucus in January, but release its presidential preferences on Super Tuesday.
Biden’s campaign has notified the state party in New Hampshire that he will not be participating in the primary, though, a write-in effort on behalf of the president is already underway. Phillips is largely focusing his campaign on New Hampshire, where he and self-help author Marianne Williamson will appear on the ballot.
The RealClearPolitics average for a 2024 national Democratic primary, based on polls conducted between Nov. 9 and Dec. 1, indicates Biden has a 60-point lead, followed by Williamson at 8.4% and Phillips at 3.4%.
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