Cornel West on whether White House bid will help Trump: ‘We’ll have to see’

Independent presidential candidate Cornel West was noncommittal when asked late Thursday if his White House bid would help former President Trump in November’s election, saying, “We’ll have to see.” 

“Well, we’ll have to see in real-time. We still got a number of months,” West told CNN anchor Abby Phillip during this Thursday night appearance on “CNN NewsNight.” 

“Trump may end up in jail and Biden may run out of gas and do an LBJ thing and pull out and they had to move to the B team as we move to Chicago,” West said, referring to the site of August’s Democratic National Convention.

“We don’t know,” he added. “What we gotta be is true to our calling: telling the truth, and seeking justice, and standing and in solidarity with oppressed people here and around the world.” 

West is challenging President Biden and Trump along with Green Party nominee Jill Stein and independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. 

Some Democrats have expressed concerns that the presence of third-party candidates would give Trump the advantage in battleground states where the margins are projected to be slim. 

In a recent Marquette Law School Poll national survey, West got 5 percent support when respondents’ choices were expanded to include third-party candidates. Trump led the way with 41 percent support, and Biden trailed with 38 percent. Kennedy received 14 percent, while Stein got 2 points.

West on Wednesday announced professor and racial justice advocate Melina Abdullah as his 2024 running mate.