If Joe Biden withdraws, what are the variations?
Some analysts are already raising what could happen if Joe Biden withdraws before the Democratic Party nomination.
President Joe Biden’s candidacy for the November elections has generated many doubts after the debate with former President Donald Trump.
Although some voices within the Democratic Party are calling for replacing him, the process would be a complex legal and political maze.
But if Joe Biden withdraws of his own volition, things could be somewhat different.
Biden has not yet been officially nominated as the Democratic Party’s candidate for the November election.
Democratic Party rules make it virtually unfeasible to replace him without his consent, especially in this case, where he won more than 90% of all delegates during the party’s primaries.
It does not appear that Biden, 81, is willing to let go of the reins of power.
The day after the contentious debate he said, “I wouldn’t run again if I didn’t believe with all my heart and soul that I could do the job. There is too much at stake.”
And so far there has been no serious effort by the Democratic Party to erase his name as a choice for president on this year’s ballot.
But if Joe Biden withdraws before he is nominated, what are the alternatives?
If Joe Biden withdraws, what are the variations?
These delegates usually pledge allegiance to the candidate they voted for, but party rules do not require them to do so.
In theory, they can vote for other candidates, especially if Biden “releases” his delegates by withdrawing, and a contest could ensue among other Democratic candidates for the nomination on the floor of the political organization.
This year there is an important novelty in the process, which cannot be lost sight of.
Usually the candidates are nominated at each party’s convention, which the Democrats will hold in Chicago from August 19-22; but this year the Democratic Party has expressed its intention to hold the vote earlier, virtually due to restrictions in the state of Ohio.
In the event that Joe Biden withdraws after being officially proclaimed by the party as the candidate for the November elections.
A “special meeting” of the 500-member Democratic National Committee would have to be convened.
In theory, the new nominee would only need a majority vote of those present at that “special meeting.”
However, it would not be a simple transition, not only because of the rushed campaigning of potential candidates, but also because of the legal and practical challenges of changing the names of Democratic hopefuls on ballots – some already printed – in all 50 states in the country before the November 5 election.
READ MORE: JOE BIDEN’S PERFORMANCE IN PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE
However, others could challenge Kamala Harris for the nomination, such as the governors of California, Gavin Newsom; Michigan, Gretchen Whitmer; Illinois, J.B. Pritzker; Maryland, Wes Moore; or Pennsylvania, Josh Shapiro.
According to the Congressional Research Service, the last aspirant to withdraw after the Democratic convention was the 1972 vice presidential candidate, Senator Thomas Eagleton, for health reasons, was replaced by Sargent Shriver as George McGovern’s running mate, who lost to Richard Nixon.
