US: I’ll stand in 2024 if health allows, says Biden

Joe Biden says he will run for re-election if his health remains good and that a possible rematch with Donald Trump would ‘increase the prospect’.

Donald Trump and former Joe Biden.

President Biden said he would run for re-election if his health remained good and that a possible rematch with Donald Trump would “increase the prospect”.

Biden, who has not previously put conditions on standing for a second term, said “fate” would play a role in his decision.

The 46th and oldest US president would be 82 by the time he took office if he won another four-year term and his health is a constant talking point in Washington.

Biden’s annual medical check-up last month found that he “remains fit for duty” but noted his problems with coughing during speeches and that his gait was “perceptibly stiffer and less fluid than it was a year or so ago”.

Trump, 75, continues to drop hints about standing a third time but has not confirmed his intentions.

Biden, when asked by ABC News whether he planned to run again in 2024, replied “Yes”. He added: “But look, I’m a great respecter of fate. Fate has intervened in my life many, many times. If I’m in the health I’m in now,” the president added, “I would run again.”

Biden was asked: “And if that means a rematch against Donald Trump?”

He replied: “You’re trying to tempt me now. Sure. Why would I not run against Donald Trump for the nominee? That’ll increase the prospect of running.”

In an interview with ABC News before last year’s election Biden said that he “absolutely” planned on being president for eight years. Despite a pledge made early during his campaign to be a “transition” president, he has maintained since his victory over Trump that his goal is for two terms.

An admission that he will not run again would be taken as the green light for open campaigning among Democratic hopefuls. However,the rock bottom approval ratings of Kamala Harris, 57, the vice-president, has already prompted some jockeying for position. Far from being seen as the heir apparent, she is about to face primary challengers for the right to become the next Democratic candidate.

Pete Buttigieg, the 39-year-old transportation secretary, who performed better than Harris in last year’s primary, is one obvious rival. There has also been speculation that JB Pritzker, the 56-year-old governor of Illinois, will run.

The Times