DNC member tells CNN Biden shouldn't run in 2024, says voters are looking for 'change candidate'

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DNC member on why Biden shouldn't run in 2024: 'People are going to be looking for a change candidate'

DNC member Steve Simeonidis explained his reasoning for why he believes Biden shouldn't run again in 2024, saying that people will be looking for a "change candidate."

Democratic National Committee (DNC) member Steve Simeonidis said Monday night on CNN that President Biden shouldn't run for reelection because of his low approval rating and because people will be looking for a "change candidate" in 2024. 

CNN's Erin Burnett noted that Simeonidis is a supporter of President Biden but asked why he doesn't believe the president should run for reelection. The member of the DNC praised the president's actions on ghost guns, the infrastructure bill, and his efforts in Ukraine. 

"The problem is, he's not and his administration is not effectively communicating those wins, which is part of the reason you're seeing his approval rating hover in the thirties," he said.

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The New York Times reported on Saturday that Democrats were concerned with Biden's leadership and many believed he "should be cut loose in 2024."

Burnett pressed further, noting comments by David Axelrod that were included in the Times article, headlined, "Should Biden Run in 2024? Democratic Whispers of ‘No’ Start to Rise."

DNC member Steve Simeonidis explained why he believes Biden shouldn't run again in 2024.  (Screenshot/CNN/Outfront)

"The presidency is a monstrously taxing job and the stark reality is the president would be closer to 90 than 80 at the end of a second term, and that would be a major issue," Axelrod told the New York Times. 

Simeonidis was also quoted in the article, saying, "to say our country was on the right track would flagrantly depart from reality." He also said that the president should announce that he would not run in 2024 "after the midterms."

"It's a host of factors," the DNC member told Burnett. "The first being that the approval rating is not where it should be at this point. But also more importantly if you look at the polls with regards to the direction of the country, less than a quarter of Americans think that our country is on the right track. With polls like that, people are going to be looking for a changed candidate. There's not going to be looking to vote for an incumbent with approval ratings down in the thirties." 

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A Monmouth University poll found in May that just 18% of Americans believe the country is heading in the right direction. 

Burnett also asked about former President Donald Trump throwing his hat into the ring and the possibility of a repeat of the 2020 election. "Does that change your view?" she asked.

DNC Member Steve Simeonidis said Monday that he doesn't think Biden should run again in 2024 due to polling on whether the country is headed in the right direction and his low approval rating.  (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

"No, I mean no matter who the Republican nominee is, if ‘16 and ’20 are any guide it's going to wind up being a fascist. Our democracy is going to be at stake, the stakes could not be higher. And in that situation, every Democrat should want to put the best nominee forward. Just because we were successful with one plan of action in 2020, things are much different in 2024," he warned. 

Simeonidis said that in 2020, candidates could campaign from one location, and that 2024 is not going to be something candidates "can win remotely." 

"In this situation you're going to have an 80-year-old man with the most pressure-cooker job on the planet needing to also full time run a nationwide campaign which is a significant ask," he continued. 

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-NY., joined CNN's Dana Bash on Sunday and was asked if she would support Biden in 2024. The Congresswoman said that she was focused on winning the majority in 2022 but said "we'll cross that bridge when we get to it." Bash responded, "That's not a yes."

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez dodged a question on CNN Sunday about whether she would support President Biden in 2024.  (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

"You know, I think we should endorse when we get to it," the New York Rep. continued. "I believe that the president has been doing a very good job so far. And, you know, should he run again? I think that I… you know, I think it's … we'll take a look at it."

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A CNN political analyst said on Sunday that the chatter among Democrats about Biden possibly not running in 2024 "weakens his ability to govern."

"I think two things are true. Number one, if gas wasn't $5 a gallon and inflation wasn't 8.5 percent, people would be still talking about whether Biden was the strongest person to pit against Trump, which is what this has always been about," Margaret Talev said on CNN's "Inside Politics."