These congressional Democrats are demanding Biden withdraw
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President Biden at a campaign event in Madison, Wisc. on July 5, 2024. Photo: Mustafa Hussain/Bloomberg via Getty Images.
More than 25 Democrats in Congress have now publicly called for President Biden to step down as the party's presumptive nominee over concerns about his ability to take on former President Trump.
Why it matters: Biden has firmly resisted calls to step aside, but lawmakers have told Axios they expect the drumbeat to continue amid a barrage of fears from constituents and donors.
These are the Democratic members of Congress who have called for Biden to end his 2024 presidential campaign:
Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas)
- Doggett became the first House Democrat to call for Biden to withdraw on July 2, releasing a statement saying Biden's work has been "transformational" but that he "pledged to be transitional."
- "Recognizing that, unlike Trump, President Biden's first commitment has always been to our country, not himself, I am hopeful that he will make the painful and difficult decision to withdraw," Doggett said.
- The progressive senior member of the House Ways and Means Committee was first elected to his Austin-based seat in 1994.
Rep. Raúl Grijalva (D-Ariz.)
- Grijalva told the New York Times July 3 that Biden needs to "shoulder the responsibility for keeping that seat — and part of that responsibility is to get out of this race."
- A prominent progressive and ranking member of the House Natural Resources Committee, Grijalva was first elected to his Tucscon-based district in 2002.
Rep. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.)
- Moulton said in a WBUR interview July 4 that Biden "has done enormous service to our country."
- But, he said, Biden should "follow in one of our founding father, George Washington's footsteps and step aside to let new leaders rise up and run against Donald Trump."
- Moulton, who challenged Biden for the Democratic nomination in 2020, was first elected to his Northeastern Massachusetts district in 2014.
Rep. Mike Quigley (D-Ill.)
- Quigley said in an MSNBC interview on July 5 that Biden's "legacy is set" and that "we owe you the greatest debt of gratitude."
- "The only thing that you can do now to cement that for all time and prevent utter catastrophe is to step down and let someone else do this," he added.
- A senior Appropriations Committee member and former member of the House Intelligence Committee, Quigley was first elected to his Chicago-based seat in 2008.
Rep. Angie Craig (D-Minn.)
- Citing Biden's debate performance and his "lack of a forceful response" to the aftermath, Craig said on July 6 she does not believe Biden can "effectively campaign and win against Donald Trump."
- "That's why I respectfully call on President Biden to step aside as the Democratic nominee for a second term as President and allow for a new generation of leaders to step forward," she continued.
- A prominent moderate and swing-district Democrat, Craig was first elected to her district in the Twin Cities metro area in 2018.
Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.)
- The top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee said in a CNN interview on July 8 that Biden should "step aside" because it has "become clear he's not the best person to carry the Democratic message."
- Smith was first elected to his Seattle-area district in 1997.
Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-N.J.)
- Sherrill said in a statement on July 9 that Biden has "honorably served this country for more than 50 years" but that she has "heard from people in my district who are united in their concern for our country and our future."
- "I am asking that he declare that he won't run for reelection and will help lead us through a process toward a new nominee," she said.
- A prominent member of the center-left New Democrat Coalition, Sherrill was first elected to her Northern New Jersey district in 2018.
Rep. Pat Ryan (D-N.Y.)
- Ryan told the New York Times on July 10 that Biden should step aside "for the good of the country," saying he would be doing a "grave disservice if I said he was the best candidate to serve this fall."
- An Iraq war veteran first elected in a 2022 special election, Ryan is one of the only swing seat House Democrats from New York.
Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.)
- Blumenauer said in a statement on July 10 that while "No president has had more accomplishments under more difficult circumstances than President Joe Biden," he "should not be the Democratic presidential nominee."
- He said it's "a painful and difficult conclusion but there is no question in my mind that we will all be better served if the president steps aside as the Democratic nominee and manages a transition under his terms."
- The retiring progressive Capitol Hill veteran was first elected to his Portland-based district in 1996.
Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.)
- Welch on July 10 became the first Senate Democrat to call on Biden to withdraw from the race.
- "We cannot unsee President Biden's disastrous debate performance," Welch wrote in an op-ed in the Washington Post. "We cannot ignore or dismiss the valid questions raised since that night," he said, adding that he has "great respect" for Biden.
- A former House member first elected to Vermont's at-large seat in 2006, Welch, a progressive, won election to the Senate in 2023.
Rep. Hillary Scholten (D-Mich.)
- Scholten told the Detroit News on July 11 that "we just have too much at stake in this election to sit on the sidelines and be silent while we still have time to do something."
- A first-term lawmaker, Scholten was elected to her competitive, Grand Rapids-based district in 2022, defeating right-wing opponent John Gibbs.
Rep. Brad Schneider (D-Ill.)
- Schneider said in a statement on July 11: "We are faced with a stark choice: be resigned to slog through this election praying we can successfully defend our democracy, or enthusiastically embrace a vibrant vision for our future."
- "I love President Biden," he said, but "the time has come ... for President Biden to heroically pass the torch to a new generation of leadership."
- First elected to his district in the Chicago suburbs in 2012 for one term and again in 2016, Schneider is the vice chair of the center-left New Democrat Coalition.
Rep. Greg Stanton (D-Ariz.)
- In a statement on July 11, Stanton touted himself as one of Biden's early supporters in 2020 but "for the sake of American democracy, and to continue to make progress on our shared priorities, I believe it is time for the President to step aside as our nominee."
- A former mayor of Phoenix, Stanton was first elected in 2018 and is a member of the center-left New Democrat Coalition.
Rep. Ed Case (D-Hawaii)
- Case said in a statement on July 11: "Difficult times and realities require difficult decisions. This is one of those times, realities and decisions."
- "I do not believe President Biden should continue his candidacy for reelection. This has nothing to do with his character and record. If it did, there would be no decision to make," he added.
- First elected to his Honolulu-based district for two terms in 2002 and again in 2018, Case is a former co-chair of the centrist Blue Dog Coalition.
Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-Wash.)
- "I doubt the President's judgment about his health, his fitness to do the job, and whether he is the one making important decisions about our country," Perez said in a statement on July 11.
- "Americans deserve to feel their president is fit enough to do the job ... The President should do what he knows is right for the country," she said.
- First elected in 2022 to her district in Southwest Washington, Perez is a current co-chair of the Blue Dog Coalition and one of a handful of Democrats in a district Trump won in 2020.
Rep. Jim Himes (D-Conn.)
- The ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee said on July 11, shortly after Biden's NATO press conference, that Democrats must put forth the strongest candidate possible."
- "I no longer believe that is Joe Biden," he added.
- Himes was first elected to his Southwestern Connecticut district in 2008 and previously served as the chair of the New Democrat Coalition.
Rep. Scott Peters (D-Calif.)
- Peters said on July 11 the debate was "not a blip" and that "while the Biden campaign claims the post-debate national polls remain relatively unchanged, polling in the swing states has worsened alarmingly."
- "The stakes are high, and we are on a losing course. My conscience requires me to speak up," he said in a statement after the press conference.
- First elected to his San Diego-based district in 2012, Peters is also a leading figure in the New Democrat Coalition and ran for chair in 2022.
Rep. Eric Sorensen (D-Ill.)
- Sorensen said in a statement on July 11: "In 2020, Joe Biden ran for President with the purpose of putting country over party. Today, I am asking him to do that again ... I am hopeful President Biden will step aside in his campaign for President."
- Sorensen was elected to his district in Northwest Illinois in 2022, prevailing over his Republican opponent by just 4 percentage points.
Rep. Brittany Pettersen (D-Colo.)
- Pettersen said in a statement on July 12, the morning after Biden's NATO press conference, that "my son and my constituents can't suffer the consequences of inaction at this critical moment."
- "Please pass the torch to one of our many capable Democratic leaders so we have the best chance to defeat Donald Trump," she added.
- The first-term lawmaker was elected to her competitive Denver-area district in 2022.
Rep. Mike Levin (D-Calif.)
- Levin said in a July 12 statement that he believes "the time has come for President Biden to pass the torch."
- "Making this statement is not easy," Levin said. "I have deep respect for President Biden's five plus decades of public service and incredible appreciation for the work we've done together these last three and a half years."
- The third-term California Democrat was elected in 2018 and co-chairs the Spent Nuclear Fuel Solutions Caucus.
Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.)
- Schiff said in a statement on July 17: "While the choice to withdraw from the campaign is President Biden's alone, I believe it is time for him to pass the torch."
- Schiff, the Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate in California, is the most high-profile Democrat to call for Biden to drop out and the first to do so after the assassination attempt against Trump.
- The former chair of the House Intelligence Committee, Schiff was first elected to Congress in 2000.
The other side: In a July 5 interview with ABC News, Biden insisted the race is a "tossup" and, pressed by host George Stephanopoulos on polls showing him down in the popular vote, said: "I don't buy that."
- Asked about pressure from Congress to step aside, Biden insisted "it's not going to happen."
- Dozens of House and Senate Democrats have come out in favor of Biden as the nominee, including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.).
Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.)
- Tester on July 18 became the second Senate Democrat to publicly call for Biden to exit the race.
- "I have worked with President Biden when it has made Montana stronger, and I've never been afraid to stand up to him when he is wrong," Tester said in a statement.
Rep. Jim Costa (D-Calif.)
- Costa said Biden should exit the race "for the good of the country" on July 18, per the Wall Street Journal.
Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.)
- Lofgren — a member of the House Jan. 6 select committee, which shut down in January — cited polling indicating Biden will lose the race in a July 18 letter asking him to step aside as the presumptive nominee.
- "If [Trump] is elected president again, he will dismantle all that Democrats have achieved for the American people," she wrote.
- Lofgren said she'd support Biden's candidacy, if he formally becomes the nominee, but doubts that he would win.
Rep. Sean Casten (D-Ill.)
- Casten called for Biden to step down "with a heavy heart and much personal reflection" in a July 19 Chicago Tribune op-ed.
- "As long as this election is instead litigated over which candidate is more likely to be held accountable for public gaffes and 'senior moments,' I believe that Biden is not only going to lose but is also uniquely incapable of shifting that conversation," Casten wrote.
Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.)
- Some members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, which Biden has recently appealed to for support, joined in the calls for Biden to "pass the torch" on July 19.
- "It would reinvigorate the race and infuse Democrats with enthusiasm and momentum heading into our convention next month," Huffman said in a joint message with representatives from Texas, Illinois and Wisconsin.
Rep. Marc Veasey (D-Texas)
- Veasey became the first member of the Congressional Black Caucus to call for Biden to step down on July 19 in the joint message.
- Members of the caucus had been considered some of Biden's most loyal supporters.
Rep. Chuy Garcia (D-Ill)
- Vice chair at large of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, Garcia was part of the representatives' joint letter on July 19.
- "We believe the most responsible and patriotic thing you can do in this moment is to step aside," they wrote.
Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wisc.)
- Chair emeritus of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, Pocan was part of the July 19 joint message, which said the perceptions of Biden "may not be fair, but they have hardened... and are now unlikely to change."
Axios' Sareen Habeshian and April Rubin contributed to this report.
Editor's note: Updates to this story include corrections to reflect that Trump won Washington's 3rd Congressional District (not Washington state) and that Rep. Jim Himes represents Connecticut (not Illinois).
