[caption id=”attachment_138967″ align=”aligncenter” width=”811″]Vice President Joe Biden speaks at the 7th US China Strategic and Economic Dialogue (S&ED) and 6th Consultation on People-to-People (CPE) at the US State Dept. in Washington, Tuesday, June 23, 2015.(AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
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Joe Biden might still be mulling a run for the White House.
According to individuals close to the vice president, both of Biden’s sons — Hunter and Beau before his death — expressed desire for him to make a bid for the presidency in 2016, reports the Wall Street Journal.
Should the 72-year-old politician decide to do so, it would be his third attempt at the White House, as Biden ran unsuccessfully for the Democratic nomination in 1988 and 2008.
From the Journal:
James Smith, a Democratic state representative in South Carolina, said that in a conversation in the last two weeks, Hunter Biden reiterated that he wanted his father to jump in the race. “He feels strongly about his dad running and serving,” Mr. Smith said.
Biden, who according to allies will likely make a decision by August, would enter a rather sparse Democratic field dominated in national polls by former secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
Biden spokeswoman Kendra Barkoff shrugged off reports of Biden’s possible presidential run, explaining, “The Biden family is going through a difficult time right now. Any speculation about the views of the vice president or his family about his political future is premature and inappropriate.”
Though the vice president would undoubtedly face quite the uphill battle against Clinton and the surprisingly strong Bernie Sanders, it’s hard to ignore the fact that Biden has some fans.
In an interview last year, President Obama declared that Biden would make a “superb president,” explaining, “He has seen the job up close, he knows what the job entails. He understands how to separate what’s really important from what’s less important.”
There is even a group called Draft Biden comprised of former staffers and campaign veterans who have dedicated themselves to drumming up support for the vice president to run in 2016.
Unfortunately for Biden, that support might not be enough. A George Washington University poll released last month demonstrated that 59 percent of Americans wouldn’t consider voting for Biden in the presidential election.
Still, Biden’s admission back in January that “there’s a chance” he will run in 2016 provides those hungry for his White House bid with at least an ounce of hope.
