Maryland governor warns Manchin against No Labels run: ‘I would urge him not to mar his legacy’

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) on Sunday urged Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) against launching a third-party presidential bid, arguing it may “mar his legacy,” while digging into No Labels, the centrist party that has flirted with putting Manchin on a potential third-party ticket.

Pressed by ABC News’s “This Week” co-anchor Jonathan Karl over his message to Manchin, Moore responded, “My message to Joe Manchin is, I thank him for his service. I think he’s had a career of distinguished service … both as a governor, [and as a] senator. I would urge him not to mar his legacy by getting involved in something so foolish.”

Manchin, 76, announced last week he will not seek reelection to the Senate in 2024, refueling speculation over a third-party presidential bid after he floated the idea earlier this year with No Labels, a political group pushing for a third-party ticket.

Moore argued No Labels “literally has no plan, has no path [and] has no policy platform.”

“They don’t even have a candidate,” Moore said. “What No Labels is, it’s a configuration made up of dark money that won’t disclose its donors but is frankly just going to simply hand an election off by being able to not actually come up with a solution but just continuing to throw wood into this flame of disillusionment. It is not real.”

The Hill reached out to No Labels and Manchin’s office for comment.

Former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R), who serves as the national co-chairman of No Labels, has said the group will “very likely” launch a third-party alternative if former President Trump and President Biden win the nominations for their parties.

Karl brought up concerns over whether a No Labels or other third-party candidate could threaten Biden’s chances of reelection, pointing to Jill Stein’s surprise Green Party bid announced last week, along with independent third-party bids from Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Cornell West.

Asked if he thinks these candidates will cost Biden the election, Moore said, “No. Because I think what President Biden is going to continue to show is that results do matter. You know, it’s one thing to say we’re going to rail against the system, and it’s another thing to actually work to make systems better. And that’s what I think President Biden has continued to show.”

Moore went on to praise Biden’s “economic growth and economic upliftment,” maintaining that the incumbent is bringing “real, productive results” for the country.

“And so, I think all the other things will just sound like noise, while President Biden’s results will sound like actually what they are: real, productive momentum for the people of this country,” Moore said.

The fight for 2024, however, has shown the potential race between Biden and Trump to be close. Recent polls from The New York Times, CNN, CBS News and Emerson College have shown Trump leading Biden in a hypothetical 2024 match-up both in key swing states and at the national level.