Manchin teases 3rd party presidential run in announcement that he won't seek reelection for Senate

Manchin has maintained ties with the "No Labels" organization that's pledged to back a third-party candidate in the next presidential election.

• On Thursday, Sen. Joe Manchin announced he's not running for reelection.
• In the video announcing his decision, he teased a run for president.
• He said he wants to see if people are interested "in creating a movement to mobilize the middle."

Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin teased running for president as a third-party candidate in his new video announcing he's not running for reelection.

"I've made one of the toughest decisions of my life and decided that I will not be running for reelection to United States Senate," Manchin said." But what I will be doing is 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."

Manchin made the surprise announcement Thursday afternoon in a video posted to the social media platform, X.

Throughout 2023, Manchin's maintained ties with the "No Labels" political organization that's pledged to back a third-party candidate in the upcoming presidential election.

In July, speaking at a No Labels forum, Manchin refused to rule out the possibility of running as a third-party candidate.

"I've never been in any race I've ever spoiled. I've been in races to win," he said. "And if I get in a race, I'm going to win."

Recent polling suggests that the 2024 race between the two most likely major candidates, President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump, is deadlocked as neither candidate has been able to substantively break away from the other.

If Manchin chooses to run for president as a third-party candidate, he won't be alone: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is also running as an independent after failing to make waves in his previous attempt to become the next Democratic presidential nominee.