Manchin says third-party ticket is a ‘long shot’ for potential candidates, including himself

After floating a third-party presidential bid, Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., said in a new interview on a local radio station that it would be a “long shot” for any third-party candidate, including himself, to win the presidential election in 2024. 

“I know that a third-party candidate, myself or anyone else who wants to jump into that fray, is really a long shot,” Manchin said on West Virginia’s “Watchdog Radio” show. “But if you can get a movement to where you can move the two established parties, the Democrat and Republican, back to where their roots are, where they’ve come from and what they’ve been able to produce over all these years, they can get back to some normality.”

Manchin also touted electoral reforms such as term limits and other strategies that could bolster the interest of middle-of-the-road voters. He and his daughter have been soliciting the attention of rich political donors to launch a centrist political group, the Wall Street Journal reported over the summer. 

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Manchin is also trying to bolster ranked-choice voting, which allows voters to rank candidates in order of preference, eliminating the need for separate runoff elections by reallocating votes until one candidate secures a majority.

“Right now you can’t compete in the system we have because it’s a closed system. You only have a duopoly of Democrat and Republican – you have very little activity,” he said.

Manchin announced earlier this month he would not seek re-election to the Senate. He has since been mulling his future in politics.

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“When America is at her best, we get things done by putting country before party, working across the aisle, and finding common ground. Many times this approach has landed me in hot water, but the fight to unite has been well worth it,” he said in a video posted on X.

“After months of deliberation and long conversation with my family, I believe in my heart of hearts that I’ve accomplished what I set out to do for West Virginia. I’ve made one of the toughest decisions of my life and decided that I will not be running for re-election to the United States Senate,” he added.

Manchin said recently that he would “absolutely” consider entering the 2024 presidential race. The senator has long fueled speculation of a presidential run by aligning himself with the third-party “No Labels” organization. 

Fox News Digital has reached out to Manchin’s office for comment.

Fox News’ Brandon Gillespie contributed to this report.