Clyburn predicts election loss if Democrats have contested convention

Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.) predicted that Democrats will likely lose in November if the party fails to quickly unify behind a single presidential candidate, despite leaving the door open to backing a new nominee should President Biden choose to leave the race.

Clyburn said in a CNN “State of the Union” interview with Jake Tapper on Sunday that he still backs Biden “until he changes his mind” about being the party’s candidate.

“If you go to the convention, have an open process in the convention, It will come out the same way it came out in 1968, 1972 and 1980,” Clyburn said.

“When we had a contested process on the floor of the convention in 1980, we lost an incumbent president and in 1972, we carried one state, Massachusetts, and the District of Columbia,” he continued. “And all of us know what happened in 1968 when we ran Lyndon Johnson out of the race, with a great record Lyndon Johnson had, got rid of him over one issue, the Vietnam War. Here, we are now using one issue to get rid of a president, the result would be the same.”

Despite acknowledging the rising concerns fellow Democrats have about Biden’s candidacy, the long-time Biden ally said he is still standing by the president.

“I support Joe Biden. He is still in this race. He will be the nominee if he stays in the race,” Clyburn said. “And I think all of us should look for ways to coalesce around that candidate.” 

Sen. Joe Manchin (I-W.Va.) joined the chorus of voices in and around the Democratic Party urging Biden to leave the race on Sunday, concerned that he will not be able to defeat former President Trump in November.

But Biden and his campaign have remained adamant that the president will be the Democratic nominee despite the rising calls.

“Joe Biden has made it more than clear: he’s in this race and he’s in it to win it. Moreover, he’s the presumptive nominee, there is no plan for an alternative nominee,” Dan Kanninen, Biden campaign battleground states director, wrote in a memo released after the Republican National Convention.

The presidential race remains neck-and-neck but has widened in recent days. Trump holds a 2.5 percent lead over Biden in national polls, according to The Hill/Decision Desk HQ average.