Biden stares down growing New York problem
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President Biden returns to the White House with first lady Jill Biden on July 7. Photo: Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
President Biden's support in deep blue New York may be shrinking, polling shows.
Why it matters: Biden's still ahead by a sizable margin. But a lurch to the right would put recapturing the House majority at risk, and be a major embarrassment in a state that's home to some of the country's most prominent elected Democrats.
Driving the news: Rep. Pat Ryan, one of the only swing seat House Democrats from New York, called on Biden to step down as the party's nominee on Wednesday "for the good of the country."
- Some other vulnerable congressional Democrats have distanced themselves from Biden following his shaky debate performance to try to boost their election prospects in tight races.
- New York Lieutenant Governor Antonio Delgado, a former congressman who represented parts of Ryan's district, also urged Biden to step aside on Wednesday.
Zoom in: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is also signaling to donors that he's open to a Democratic ticket that isn't led by Biden, Axios' Hans Nichols and Stephen Neukam reported.
Between the lines: The red wave that materialized almost exclusively in New York in 2022 may not be going away.
- Hochul won by just six points in 2022 and House Democrats lost almost every competitive congressional race in New York.
By the numbers: The calls come as polling shows Biden's support narrowing modestly in the state that he carried by 23 points in 2020.
- In a June Siena College poll, Biden led former President Trump by eight points in New York. In February, he led Trump in the Siena College poll by 12 points.
- Polling from around the same time before the 2020 presidential election found Biden leading Trump in New York by 25 points.
And in two private polls reviewed by Politico from swing New York House districts, one in September and one in March, Trump led Biden by one point.
- "We're still acting like this is a one-party state, which for pretty much 20, 25 years it has been," Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine (D) told Politico. "I truly believe we're a battleground state now."
Reality check: The nonpartisan Cook Political Report still rates New York, where a GOP presidential candidate has not won since 1984, as solidly Democrat.
Go deeper: These congressional Democrats are demanding Biden withdraw
