Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ) confirmed he is “concerned” about the No Labels Party (NLP) of Arizona after the group announced an event with Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) when asked whether the nascent party could cost President Joe Biden the 2024 election.
Kelly made the remarks during an appearance on “State of the Nation” with Jake Tapper, who reminded viewers that Biden won Arizona by “less than half of a percentage point” and asked the former astronaut if he thinks “Manchin and No Labels could potentially cost Joe Biden his reelection?”
In response, Kelly first argued that NLP should not be considered a political party due to its alleged “dark money” funding from sources he labeled “a few rich people” before turning to the party’s potential in Arizona.
“I’m obviously concerned about what’s going on here in Arizona and across the country,” Kelly confirmed, before adding that Biden “has a very strong record to run on” and noting that Election Day is roughly 18 months away. “I hope this all gets sorted out,” Kelly added.
Kelly’s appearance on CNN came after NLP announced Manchin would be a keynote speaker for its New Hampshire town hall event on Monday. That announcement reportedly fueled concern among Democrats that the senator might pursue a third party bid for president, aided by NLP, potentially upending the balance of power in the U.S. Senate and bleeding enough votes from Biden to pave the way for a Republican victory in battleground states including Arizona.
Manchin is up for reelection in 2024, but has not announced whether he intends to seek another term, and some have speculated he may be plotting a third party bid for the White House. Recently, West Virginia Governor Jim Justice announced he would seek Manchin’s seat, and polling conducted earlier this year suggested Justice may be the only West Virginia politician capable of unseating Manchin. The senator did not return a comment request from The Arizona Sun Times by press time.
NLP has repeatedly stressed it does not intend to fuel a spoiler candidate, but would allow another candidate to use its ballot access as a “launching pad” for a serious presidential effort should both parties nominate candidates “the vast majority of Americans don’t want.”
Party co-chairman Joe Lieberman reiterated this on Monday, telling ABC that “we’re not in this to be spoilers” and NLP would not run a candidate if doing so would help elect a Democrat or a Republican.
Still, the Arizona Democratic Party (AZDP) both filed lawsuit in April and an official complaint last week, each asking Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes to strip the party of its ballot access.
AZDP’s lawsuit, which names Fontes and several Arizona state elections employees as defendants, cites federal law requiring political committees spending more than $5,000 to influence an election to register their donors, and alleged the party continued gathering signatures after key members signed an affidavit attesting to the validity of the gathered signatures.
Similarly, in its complaint filed last week, AZDP seeks to force Fontes to revoke NLP’s status within Arizona until the party names the donors who financed the signature gathering process necessary for the party to form or releases information regarding its recent expenses.
NLP called the lawsuit an “undemocratic and outrageous” attempt to stifle the party rather than face competition at the ballot box. In response to the complaint, NLP told The Sun Times the AZDP was “desperate to keep voters from having a real choice” for the White House and charged the party with “abusing the legal system to tie us up in court – at taxpayer expense – in a campaign that amounts to voter suppression.”
NLP did not return a comment request from The Sun Times prior to publication.
The party has gained more than 7,000 voters from Maricopa County and Pima County since being officially recognized by as a party by Fontes earlier this year. It is the fourth party recognized in Arizona, joining the Democrats, Republicans, and Libertarians.
– – –
Tom Pappert is a reporter for The Arizona Sun Times and The Star News Network. Follow Tom on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Image “CNN Interview” by CNN and photo “Sen. Mark Kelly” is by Mark Kelly.
Biden has a strong record on which to run? Come on Mark, no one believes that partisan garbage. Biden has accomplished nothing while in office which is far more than his challenged assistant Harris.