Joe Manchin suggests Mitt Romney, Rob Portman as potential running mates as he flirts with third-party ticket
Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., picks Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, or former Ohio Republican Sen. Rob Portman as potential running mates in a hypothetical third-party ticket on Thursday at the City Club of Cleveland breakfast forum. (City Club of Cleveland)
Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, said that he does not have any plans to run for president or vice president in 2024.
Romney's comment came after Democrat Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., said he would pick either Romney or former Ohio Republican Sen. Rob Portman as a running mate if he jumped into the 2024 presidential race.
"Hypothetically, if I was picking my running mate, really who I would ask right now is Mitt Romney," Manchin, who has left the door open to a third-party presidential run, told voters Thursday at the City Club of Cleveland breakfast forum. Manchin, however, added that he was not "not running for anything."
Romney, a former Massachusetts governor who ran for the White House in 2008 and 2012, squashed the rumors and noted he would "certainly" not be a vice president.
Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, questions Office of Management Director Shalanda D. Young during a Senate Budget Committee hearing titled "The President's Fiscal Year 2024 Budget Proposal" in the Dirksen Building in Washington, D.C., on March 15, 2023.
"Well, that's really presumptuous. I would be the president. He would be my running mate," Romney joked in a statement to Deseret News when asked about Manchin's comment.
"No, I'm not going to run for president," he added. "Certainly I'm not running for vice president. But (Manchin is) kind to say that. We're good friends."
Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., right, and Sen. Mitt Romney, R- Utah. (Jabin Botsford)
After flirting with a third-party White House run for months, Manchin on Friday said he wouldn't bid for the presidency.
"I will not be seeking a third-party run, i will not be involved in a presidential run," Manchin announced during a speech in West Virginia.
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Romney was the Republican presidential nominee in 2012, sparking rumors he might be considering a third run at the White House after deciding not to seek re-election in the Senate in 2024.
Romney also added that he will "not" be voting for former President Trump if he is the 2024 GOP nominee.
Fox News' Jamie Joseph contributed to this report.
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