TUCSON, AZ — Tucson Congressman Raúl Grijalva is now the second elected Democrat in Congress pushing for President Joe Biden to withdraw from his presidential race, according to a report from the New York Times.
In comments made on Wednesday, Grijalva publicly expressed concerns about Biden's reelection campaign.
“If he’s the candidate, I’m going to support him, but I think that this is an opportunity to look elsewhere,” Grijalva, who represents Arizona's 7th Congressional District, told The New York Times.
“What he needs to do is shoulder the responsibility for keeping that seat — and part of that responsibility is to get out of this race.”
Grijalva, whose district covers much of the southern part of the state up into Maricopa County, has represented Arizona in Congress since 2003.
The comments come nearly a week after Biden's participation in a debate with former President Donald Trump, in which Biden gave an uneven performance, at times struggling to complete sentences or give concise answers. Since then, some have raised the possibility of a potential change to the presidential lineup ahead of the Democratic National Convention in August.
Texas Congressman Lloyd Doggett was the first elected Democrat in Congress to call for Biden to step back from the Democratic nomination.
ABC15 has reached out to Grijalva's office for confirmation and additional comment.
