WASHINGTON (AP) — Joe Biden is not on the ballot this fall.But at least three prominent members of his administration will be, representing the Democratic Party in a trio of governor’s races that may test the resilience of the Biden brand two years after he left the White House under a cloud of disapproval.Two Biden Cabinet members — former U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland of New Mexico and former U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra of California — advanced to the general election ballot for governor in their states this week. They joined Keisha Lance Bottoms, a former senior adviser, who secured the Democratic nomination in Georgia’s governor’s race last month. Their rise comes as a bitter feud erupts among Biden’s allies, including some who worked in the White House, about the Biden family’s reemergence in the public spotlight just five months before the high-stakes midterm elections. Hunter Biden is mixing it up with admirers and critics on social media, while Jill Biden is rehashing the tortured saga of the last presidential race in a new memoir. Biden himself has his own book coming out later this year.
As candidates shift toward the general election phase of the midterms, it’s unclear whether the Biden connections will help or hurt the Democratic gubernatorial hopefuls come November.
