WASHINGTON – Body
Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia announced Friday that he has registered as an independent, raising questions about his future political plans.
Manchin, who would have faced a difficult re-election in November had he chosen to run, has long been a vocal critic of the Democratic Party and an obstacle to many of President Joe Biden’s legislative priorities.
Manchin has served in the Senate since 2010. He serves as chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. He said in a statement that over the past 15 years, he has seen both major political parties leave their constituents “behind because of partisan extremism, while also putting our democracy at risk.”
“Today, our national politics are broken and neither party is willing to compromise to find common ground,” Manchin said. “To remain true to myself and remain committed to putting country before party, I have decided to register as an independent, with no party affiliation, and continue to fight for America’s sensible majority.”
But his announcement left many questions unanswered. Manchin has not revealed whether he will continue talking to Democrats in the Senate, where they hold a slim majority. And he has not indicated whether he will run for higher office in the near future.
A request for additional comment from his office was not immediately returned.
Manchin announced in February that he would not run for president, saying he did not want to be a “spoiler.”
“I will not seek a third-party candidacy,” he said in a speech at West Virginia University. “I will not be involved in a presidential race. I will be involved in ensuring we get a president who has the knowledge, passion and ability to bring this country together.”
The speech was billed as part of a national listening tour that Manchin announced when he decided not to run for another term in the Senate. He told the Morgantown audience that he had no interest in being “a deal breaker, if you will, a spoiler, whatever you want to call it.”
“I just don’t think it’s the right time,” he said then.
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