(NewsNation) — Allan Lichtman makes it very clear Joe Biden is the Democrats’ best hope for victory in November, but if Biden does decide to end his reelection bid, the American University historian says the president shouldn’t stop there.
“He should resign the presidency for the good of the country. That would be a very popular move. He would release his delegates to Harris, make sure that she’s the consensus nominee,” Lichtman told NewsNation’s “Elizabeth Vargas Live.”
As for polls this week showing former President Donald Trump widening his nationwide lead over Biden, Lichtman says to ignore them.
“Remember: all the polls and all the pundits were assuring us that Hillary Clinton could not possibly lose in 2016,” he said.
Lichtman has correctly predicted nine of the last 10 presidential elections, including Donald Trump’s victory over Hillary Clinton in 2016.
Lichtman bases his predictions on 13 keys to victory. He says that if the party holding the White House loses six of those keys, that party will probably lose the election.
Lichtman’s 13 keys to the White House
- Party Mandate
- Party Contest
- Incumbency
- 3rd Party
- Short-term Economy
- Long-term Economy
- Policy Change
- Social Unrest
- Scandal
- No Military/Foreign Policy Failure
- Major Foreign/Military Success
- Incumbent Charisma
- Challenger Charisma
He says that if Biden steps aside without elevating Harris to the presidency, Democrats lose two keys they currently hold: incumbency and a lack of a contest within the party.
Lichtman said complete resignation is “the only way Biden should get out of this race and preserve (the) Democrats’ chance to win.”
The White House again said that Biden will not be exiting the race. At Wednesday’s press room briefing, press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Biden “is going to continue to fight for the American people.”