Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly mentioned as option to replace President Joe Biden on ticket
Jul 18, 2024, 9:28 AM

Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona, center, is getting mentions as a potential replacement for President Joe Biden atop the Democratic ticket in the 2024 general election. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
(Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
PHOENIX — Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona has entered the conversation about a potential replacement for President Joe Biden on the Democratic ticket.
Multiple recent reports have mentioned Kelly’s name amid speculation that Biden might step aside, or be forced out, for a younger candidate.
A growing number of Democratic leaders, including Arizona U.S. Reps. Greg Stanton and Raúl Grijalva, have called for a change at the top of the ticket amid concerns that the 81-year-old incumbent’s age has become a liability he can’t overcome in a rematch against Republican nominee Donald Trump.
Arizona has produced two previous presidential nominees, both Republicans who lost their races: Barry Goldwater in 1964 and John McCain in 2008.
Why Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly might be a good candidate for president
While Kelly still is in his first Senate term after winning the seat in 2022, his story could be compelling on the national stage.
Before entering politics, he served the nation as a Navy pilot and an astronaut. He is married to former U.S. Rep. Gabby Giffords, who was seriously wounded in a mass shooting in Tucson in 2011, and his parents were police officers.
Politically, Kelly is in the moderate wing of the party. He’s repeatedly pushed for stronger border security measures, which could be a factor for swing voters who want an alternative to Trump but are displeased with Biden’s immigration record.
What has been reported about potential replacements for Biden?
On Monday, The New York Times reported that some Democratic donors have been promoting Kelly as a possible presidential candidate.
The Kelly bandwagon picked up speed Wednesday when Politico reported that a memo circulating among party officials shows Kelly and several other alternatives performing better than Biden against Trump in seven battleground states, including Arizona.
The memo is based on interviews conducted July 5-12 with more than 15,000 voters in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, the largest states that are considered up for grabs in November. BlueLabs Analytics designed the process to measure the impact of a Democratic presidential candidate change in those swing states.
The findings show Kelly and three other Democrats outperforming Biden by roughly 5 percentage points in the battlegrounds. The other top options were Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.
While Vice President Kamala Harris performed better than Biden, she trailed the average alternative.
Biden is trailing Trump in each of the battleground states, according to the memo.
“Voters are looking for a fresh face. Those more closely tied to the current administration perform relatively worse than other tested candidates,” according the BlueLabs Analytics report.
Calls for change at top of Democratic ticket grow louder
Biden has insisted he is not backing down, adamant that he is the candidate who beat Trump before and will do it again this year. But publicly and privately, key Democrats are sending signals of concern, and some hope he will assess the trajectory of the race and his legacy.
Over the past week, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries have spoken privately to the president, candidly laying out the views of Democrats on Capitol Hill, including their concerns, according to The Associated Press.
Separately, the chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, Rep. Suzan DelBene of Washington, spoke with the president last week armed with fresh data. The campaign chief specifically aired the concerns of frontline Democrats who are seeking election to the House.
And on Wednesday, California Rep. Adam Schiff, a close ally of Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, became the highest-profile House Democrat to call for Biden to drop his reelection bid, saying that while the decision is Biden’s alone to make, he believes it’s time to “pass the torch.”
Later that day, Biden was diagnosed with COVID-19, forcing him off the the campaign trail.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.