Former First Lady Jill Biden is reportedly standing by her husband’s decision to seek reelection and says she remains convinced that former President Joe Biden would have defeated President Donald Trump had he remained the Democratic nominee in the 2024 election.
Speaking Tuesday during an appearance on MSNBC’s Morning Joe, Jill Biden reflected on the political turmoil surrounding the final months of her husband’s reelection campaign while promoting her upcoming memoir, View from the West Wing.
During the interview, co-host Willie Geist asked about criticism from some Democrats who have argued that Biden missed an opportunity to step aside after the party’s stronger-than-expected performance in the 2022 midterm elections. Those critics have suggested the president could have used that moment to begin a transition to a new generation of leadership.
Jill Biden acknowledged that discussions took place about whether the president should seek another term. However, she emphasized that support within the Democratic Party remained strong as the 2024 campaign approached.
According to the former first lady, Democratic voters and party supporters consistently encouraged Biden to run again. She recalled hearing repeated calls from supporters who believed he should seek a second term.
At the same time, she noted that questions about the president’s age followed him throughout the period leading up to the campaign. Biden himself, she said, wrestled with those concerns and openly questioned whether he might be too old to run again.
Despite those doubts, Jill Biden said polling at the time played a significant role in the decision to continue. She stated that surveys showed Joe Biden as the only Democratic figure capable of defeating Trump, which she said ultimately influenced his choice to remain in the race.
The conversation later turned to the emotional fallout from Biden’s eventual withdrawal from the campaign.
Asked whether she or the former president regretted dropping out, Jill Biden focused on the personal impact the experience had on their family. She described the period as deeply painful, not only for herself and her husband but also for their children and grandchildren.
She said she would never want a loved one to endure such an experience again and called it a difficult chapter for the entire family.
When Geist pressed further, asking whether Joe Biden still believes he would have beaten Trump, Jill Biden offered a direct answer.
“I believe he would have beat Donald Trump in that election,” she said.
Her comments come as renewed attention has focused on the final stages of Biden’s 2024 campaign. During recent media appearances, Jill Biden has discussed the president’s widely criticized June 2024 debate performance against Trump, recalling that she feared at the time he may have been suffering a stroke.
That debate intensified concerns among Democrats regarding Biden’s age and fitness for office, fueling calls for him to step aside. Less than a month later, Biden ended his reelection campaign and endorsed then–Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee.
Harris ultimately went on to lose the November election to Trump, bringing an end to a turbulent political battle that left lingering questions about what might have happened had Biden remained in the race.
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