No Labels drops third-party White House bid against Joe Biden and Donald Trump
- The centrist US group will not be fielding a presidential candidate, saying none with a ‘credible path’ to winning the election had emerged
- The decision is a boon for Democrats, who had complained that an independent opponent would play spoiler to Biden’s chances of winning
No Labels, the centrist political group that sought to shake up the 2024 presidential campaign with a third-party candidate to rival Joe Biden and Donald Trump, said Thursday it wouldn’t field a candidate after all.
“Americans remain more open to an independent presidential run and hungrier for unifying national leadership than ever before,” No Labels founder Nancy Jacobson said in a statement.
“But No Labels has always said we would only offer our ballot line to a ticket if we could identify candidates with a credible path to winning the White House. No such candidates emerged, so the responsible course of action is for us to stand down.”
The decision not to field a presidential ticket is a boon for Democrats who had complained that a centrist candidate would play spoiler to Biden’s chances of winning.
The abandoned presidential bid comes after weeks of speculation over who would be on the ticket, including former New Jersey governor Chris Christie, former UN ambassador Nikki Haley and former Maryland governor Larry Hogan, who stepped down from the No Labels board and has since launched a US Senate candidacy.