COLUMBUS, Ohio — President Joe Biden is adamant that he will continue his bid for re-election. He sent a letter to Congressional Democrats Monday.
"I want you to know that despite all the speculation in the press and elsewhere, I am firmly committed to staying in the race, to running this race to the end, and to beating Donald Trump," Biden wrote at the beginning of the letter.
"He has shown himself to be a successful president," Ohio Senate Minority Leader Nickie Antonio (D - Lakewood) said.
Antonio is a presidential delegate whose vote at the August Democratic National Convention is pledged to Biden. She believes he is the best candidate for the Democrats.
"If I have to choose between an old guy who cares about this country and cares about democracy and the people in the country, then Joe Biden is my candidate," Antonio said. "The other guy is an old guy who is also a felon."
The Ohio Democratic Party is also standing behind Biden.
"This race is a choice between a president who wakes up every day to fight for working families in Ohio, or a 34-count convicted felon whose only fight is against democracy and the rule of law, and an economy that works for all of us," ODP Chair Liz Walters said in a statement sent to 10TV.
Longtime Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown has not expressed an opinion on whether President Biden should stay in the race, and says he will not make any recommendations.
"I'm not a pundit. I've talked to people across Ohio. They have legitimate questions about whether the president should continue his campaign, and I'll keep listening to people," Brown told Youngstown CBS affiliate WKBN.
Senator Brown says he'll pass along what he hears from the people.
State Senator Antonio attended an event at the White House as recently as Christmas and saw Biden in action. She believes he had a bad night at the debate.
"That was not the person I have seen make a speech, be there greeting people at the White House," Antonio said. "So, clearly in my mind, he had an off night."
Senator Antonio also says the wheels are in motion and the president already has the majority of pledged delegates ahead of the convention. So, he is the only one who can make the decision about his candidacy.