Former US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi casts doubt on Joe Biden's 2024 White House bid

Democratic Party heavyweight and former US House of Representatives speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Wednesday (July 10) that time is running out for United States President Joe Biden to make a final decision on his re-election bid to the White House. Pelosi stressed that the call for a presidential rerun was completely Biden's to make.

The former House speakersuggested that the president could still step aside and make wayfor somebody else amid a divide in the Democratic Party over Biden's candidacy. However, the incumbentpresidenthas insisted that he is staying in the race.

"It's up to the president to decide if he is going to run," Pelositold MSNBC.

"We're all encouraging him to make that decision because the time is running short."

Pelosi, however, stopped short of advocating either way on the Biden question.

"I want him to do whatever he decides to do, and that's the way it is," she said. "Whatever he decides, we go with."

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Biden, 81, has managed to win the support of some top Democrats.But several lawmakers in the Democratic Party have publicly expressed concerns about the veteran Democrat leader'smental fitness after his disastrous debate performance last month against his rival and predecessorDonald Trump.

So far, seven House Democratshave openly called on Biden to not seek reelection.Additionally, ahandful of senators have also expressed concerns.

Late Tuesday (July 9), Colorado's Michael Bennet became the firstDemocrat in the Senate to publicly turn on the president and said Biden would lose if he stayed on the ballot.

"Donald Trump is on track, I think, to win this election, and maybe win it by a landslide and take with it the Senate and the House," Bennet told CNN, adding he believes the White House "has done nothing" to demonstrate they have a plan to win in November.

(With inputs from agencies)