A group of House Democrats has raised serious concerns about plans for an early virtual roll call to nominate President Joe Biden for reelection. The Democrats are circulating a letter expressing worries about stifling debate by holding the roll call as soon as July 21, ahead of the Democratic National Convention in August.
The letter, which has not been sent yet, describes the early roll call as a 'terrible idea' that could undermine the morale and unity of Democrats. Despite Biden's active campaign schedule in battleground Nevada, uneasiness lingers over his candidacy following a lackluster debate performance against Republican Donald Trump.
While nearly 20 congressional Democrats have called for Biden to step aside, public calls for his withdrawal have ceased since the recent assassination attempt against Trump. However, internal party debates about Biden's future continue.
The party had initially planned the early roll call to ensure Biden's qualification for the ballot in Ohio, but the state has since changed its rules, rendering the issue irrelevant. Some Democrats, including Rep. Jared Huffman, have expressed concerns about the viability of Biden's campaign and the need for a major course correction.
The DNC has not set a formal date for the virtual roll call but is expected to discuss the matter in a meeting on Friday. Biden's reelection campaign maintains that the roll call must be completed by August 6 to meet the original Ohio ballot deadline.
Despite Ohio modifying its deadline, the campaign argues that the virtual roll call is still necessary to secure Biden's ballot access in case the state's legislature decides to change the date again. However, the Ohio secretary of state's office has stated that the issue is resolved and criticized Democrats for attempting to blame Ohio for their party's dysfunction.
