West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, a centrist Democrat, and former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman, a moderate Republican who was as ambassador to China under Barack Obama and to Russia under Donald Trump, will appear at Saint Anselm College on Monday.
The duo will speak at an event organized by No Labels, a bipartisan group that is considering launching a potential 2024 third-party ticket.
Manchin’s Senate term is up next year. He’s not said if he’ll seek reelection, and hasn’t ruled out a run for president as an independent.
Huntsman ran for president in 2012, and dropped out of the race after finishing a distant third in the New Hampshire primary.
The event, which will also feature 2000 Democratic vice presidential nominee and former Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman, comes as 2024 campaigning here is picking up.
Republicans are doing most of it, but Democrats challenging President Biden – Robert Kennedy Jr. and Marianne Williamson – are also courting voters.
With Biden and national Democrats planning to have South Carolina hold their party’s first primary, it’s unclear if Biden will campaign in New Hampshire, or place his name on the ballot here.
On the agenda for the No Labels event is a presentation of what the group is calling a “Common Sense” policy booklet.
“Our political discourse is lacking engaged debates around common sense solutions to solve the pressing issues facing our nation,” Manchin said. “I look forward to modeling that type of conversation with my good friend, Governor Huntsman, and the No Labels community.”
Who comprises the “No Labels community” in New Hampshire – or elsewhere – is an open question.
The group has described its 2024 efforts as an “insurance policy” should 2024 end in a Biden-Trump rematch.
No Labels’ leadership has said the group could hold a convention to nominate a third-party ticket next April.
Some Democrats, meanwhile, are already fighting to limit No Labels potential effect on 2024, which they see as likely to end up helping Donald Trump, should he be the GOP nominee.
Former Missouri Congressman Dick Gephardt is expected to launch a bipartisan group this week to oppose the No Labels’ third-party presidential effort.
Questions about No Labels’ funding have been raised since its founding in 2010, and are likely to intensify if the group actually moves toward launching a presidential ticket.
New Hampshire has, over the years, played host to numerous No Labels events.
In 2015, the group hosted eight presidential candidates at an event it called a “Problem Solvers Convention.”
Participants included the Democrat and Republican who ended up winning New Hampshire’s 2016 presidential primaries: Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, and then-candidate Donald Trump.
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