DETROIT – A Democratic Michigan lawmaker is calling for President Joe Biden to leave the 2024 Presidential race, saying “It’s time to pass the torch.”
The request comes days after Michigan Rep. Phil Skaggs called for Biden to be replaced on the 2024 ballot.
Related: ‘The country will come to an end’: Michigan Democrat calls to replace Biden on ballot
Michigan Rep. Hillary Scholten posted on social media a request for Biden to step aside and allow a new lawmaker to take his place in the election.
“With the challenges facing our country in 2025 and beyond, it is essential that we have the strongest possible candidate leading the top of the ticket -- not just to win, but to govern,” Scholten wrote. “Someone who can unflinchingly defend women’s rights to make our own healthcare decisions, while also advancing the gains we’ve made on lowering healthcare costs and protecting workers. We must have a standard bearer who will fight morning, noon, and night for our civil and voting rights and unite the free world against the rising tide of authoritarianism.”
She praised Biden for his first term and accomplishments and achievements on infrastructure, climate change, healthcare and more, saying that he spent his life serving the country and building the next generation, but that it’s time for the next generation to step up.
“The people of Michigan’s 3rd Congressional District elected me to represent them with integrity,” Scholten wrote. “They elected a Congresswoman they trust to speak the truth, even when it’s hard. They voted for someone who would put America’s future first and stand up for what is right. That’s what I am doing now.”
Scholten was elected to the current 3rd Congressional District in 2022, which serves a section of Michigan’s west side, including Grand Rapids, Grand Haven and Muskegon.
“Ultimately this choice belongs to the president and the president alone. I will respect his decision if he chooses to remain in the race, and I will still vote for him, as a clear and necessary alternative to Donald Trump, who would sow chaos and destruction if he were to return to the Oval Office,” Scholten wrote.
You can read the full post from Scholten below:
President Biden has secured an incredible legacy during his lifetime of public service. The president’s tremendous achievements on infrastructure, healthcare costs, climate change, and gun safety follow a distinguished career in the Senate, which included landmark accomplishments such as the Violence Against Women’s Act. President Biden has spent his life serving our nation and building the next generation of American leadership. For the good of our democracy, I believe it is time for him to step aside from the presidential race and allow a new leader to step up.
Ultimately this choice belongs to the president and the president alone. I will respect his decision if he chooses to remain in the race, and I will still vote for him, as a clear and necessary alternative to Donald Trump, who would sow chaos and destruction if he were to return to the Oval Office. But the people of Michigan’s 3rd Congressional District elected me to represent them with integrity. They elected a Congresswoman they trust to speak the truth, even when it’s hard. They voted for someone who would put America’s future first and stand up for what is right. That’s what I am doing now.
With the challenges facing our country in 2025 and beyond, it is essential that we have the strongest possible candidate leading the top of the ticket -- not just to win, but to govern. Someone who can unflinchingly defend women’s rights to make our own healthcare decisions, while also advancing the gains we’ve made on lowering healthcare costs and protecting workers. We must have a standard bearer who will fight morning, noon, and night for our civil and voting rights and unite the free world against the rising tide of authoritarianism. Joe Biden has been that leader for so long; but this is not about the past, it’s about the future. It’s time to pass the torch.
Michigan Rep. Hillary Scholten