Dem
50
Ties
1
GOP
49
Perhaps you were thinking the 2024 election cycle would not begin until, say, mid-2023. Or, at least, the start of 2023. Or, at least, until after the Georgia U.S. Senate runoff is over. Ha! You fool. And Donald Trump wasn't the only one to be guilty of premature declaration yesterday. Rep. Alan Mooney (R-WV) also declared a 2024 run, as well.
Most readers presumably have no idea who Mooney is. After all, he's just one of 435 members of the House. He's very Trumpy, so he would never run for president against the Dear Leader. Knowing that, and knowing that Mooney is R-WV, you presumably can guess who he's gunning for. That's right; Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) has his first potential opponent. Mooney said that he is "all in" on knocking off Manchin.
Of course, there are still many unknowns about this race. West Virginia has two other Republican House members (David McKinley and Carol Miller) who might be interested in a promotion. Gov. Jim Justice (R-WV) is also said to be considering a run, since he will be term-limited by 2024 (technically, he could run again for governor in 2028, but he has to vacate for at least one term). And on top of all the Republican maneuvering, Manchin has not yet committed to a run; he says he will decide later this year. He could very well decide to retire, or he might try to get his old job as governor back. If Manchin steps down, who knows what candidate the Democrats will come up with. Maybe they can run the corpse of Robert Byrd. After all, the South Carolina GOP managed to elect the corpse of Strom Thurmond multiple times.
Anyhow, the 2024 races are already underway. Hope you enjoyed your one-week breather. (Z)