Pa. Gov. Josh Shapiro is among Democratic governors meeting with President Biden about the future of his campaign

HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro will be among the Democratic governors meeting with President Joe Biden Wednesday night to discuss a path forward for his presidential campaign.

Shapiro has issued several clear-throated statements in support of Biden and his reelection — although he was among the first Democratic officials to publicly acknowledge Biden’s poor debate performance that has sent Democrats into a frenzy about whether the 81-year-old president should drop out of the race.

“I’ll be the first to admit that that was not a good look in that debate last night but it doesn’t change the fact that there are stark competing differences in this race,” Shapiro said on CNN the morning after the debate.

“Joe Biden had a bad debate night, and Donald Trump was a bad president and would be a bad president,” Shapiro repeated at a news conference Monday. “Nothing about Thursday night’s debate changed the fact that there’s a clear choice in the race.”

Shapiro will join the call virtually, a spokesperson said, as the first-term governor negotiates his second budget deal with the GOP-controlled state Senate and narrow Democratic majority in the state House. The budget was due on Sunday to start the new fiscal year.

“Governor Shapiro will stay in Pennsylvania tomorrow and continue working with Democratic and Republican leaders in the legislature to close a budget deal,” said Manuel Bonder, Shapiro’s press secretary.

The closed-door meeting will take place in-person and virtually from the White House’s Roosevelt Room on Wednesday night, the New York Times reported. Among those expected to attend in-person include Democratic Governors Association chair and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, CBS News reported.

In a fundraising email for U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, Newsom said he was on his way “to Washington, D.C. to meet and stand with the president at the White House later tonight” before he plans to stop in Pennsylvania to campaign for Casey.

Shapiro — a potential 2028 presidential candidate — has been on several short lists of potential replacement candidates for Biden. However, the first-term governor of a critical battleground state is unlikely to be a first-choice replacement, if Biden were to choose to leave the race.

The New York Times reported Wednesday that Biden is considering whether he should stay in the race, but is still “deeply in the fight for re-election” and knows his upcoming appearances in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin are crucial for the future of his campaign.

Biden will visit Philadelphia on Sunday to speak at a National Education Association conference, which is the nation’s largest teachers union.