Joe Manchin to speak at New Hampshire event in January amid 2024 speculation
By Julia Johnson, Washington Examiner
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) will headline a January event in New Hampshire roughly one month after announcing he wouldn’t seek reelection to the Senate.
Manchin, the centrist senator who has been long-speculated for a third-party presidential bid, is joining the New Hampshire Institute of Politics at St. Anselm College to speak at a Politics and Eggs event on Jan 12.
“Please join the New England Council and the New Hampshire Institute of Politics for an in-person program with U.S. Senator Joe Manchin,” read the website for the New England Council.
“Americans Together, a new organization that is creating a platform for the middle to connect and empower moderate voices around the country, is kicking off this effort by launching a listening tour in January starting in New Hampshire. Their goal is to build a bridge between popular will and political outcomes,” it continued.
Manchin revealed the listening tour plans last week, telling reporters at the Wall Street Journal CEO Council Summit, “I start in January, I’ll be two months on the road. And all we’re trying to do is just mobilize people like myself who feel like they’re homeless, politically homeless.”
The renegade politician added, “I don’t recognize the Democratic Party and I have a D by my name.”
He also claimed, “I have a lot of Republicans who don’t recognize the Republican Party that have Rs by their name.”
In November, Manchin confirmed speculation that he wouldn’t be seeking reelection to the Senate. He left his future plans vague in the announcement, simply saying he would be “traveling the country and speaking out to see if there is an interest in creating a movement to mobilize the middle and bring Americans together.”
He has yet to rule out a potential third-party bid, which has been rumored for himself with the help of centrist political party No Labels. The group has so far gained access to ballots in more than 10 states as it maintains that it might still nominate a candidate, especially if former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden are the nominees put forward by the two major parties.