Manchin Won’t Rule Out Independent Senate Bid

The West Virginia Metro News reports:

Senator Joe Manchin, following a national news report about the slim possibility that he could still run for his current seat as an independent, said there’s no way. Mostly no way.

CNN reported this week that Schumer had talked with Manchin about the possibility of running as an independent for U.S. Senate, a decision that could be made late in the cycle.

That story made clear that Manchin “threw cold water” on the possibility — but included comments from Manchin that didn’t slam the door. “I think that’s a long, long, long-shot scenario,” Manchin told CNN. He continued, “I don’t know if anything in Washington, DC, is 100 percent.”

CNN reports: 

Democratic sources said the idea could gain currency if their party’s nominee in West Virginia ends up being Don Blankenship, the former coal mining executive who served a year in jail after being found guilty of conspiring to violate mine health and safety standards in the aftermath of a deadly 2010 mine explosion.

Blankenship ran as a Republican but lost in the 2018 Senate primary, later switching parties in 2024 to run in the contested Democratic primary to fill Manchin’s seat.

The belief among some Manchin allies: If Blankenship squares off against Gov. Jim Justice, the front-runner for the GOP nomination, Manchin could have a path to win with a plurality of voters. Manchin has until August 1 to file as an independent.