Vice President Biden’s sons urged him to run for president in 2016, according to a new report in The Wall Street Journal.
Biden’s son, Beau, reportedly coaxed his father to jump into the race in the months before Beau Biden died from brain cancer in May at the age of 46.
“It’s no secret that Beau wanted him to run,” Dick Harpootlian, a former chairman of the South Carolina Democratic Party, told the Journal. “If he does what Beau wanted him to do, he’ll run.”
Beau’s Biden’s brother, Hunter, has also worked to convince the vice president that he should mount his own presidential bid, according to the report.
“He feels strongly about his dad running and serving,” James Smith, a Democratic state lawmaker from South Carolina who has spoken with Hunter, said, according to the Journal.
Joe Biden is known for his strong relationship with his family, so the news that his sons have been persuading him into running adds to speculation about his decision to jump into the race.
If the vice president runs, he would be considered an underdog against Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton. But polls show Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) running close to Clinton in the early primary state of New Hampshire, which could prompt more challengers to enter the field.
People close to Biden say the needs of his family in the wake of Beau Biden’s death are a top concern, as he decides whether to run.
“It’s all about his personal situation – ‘Can I do this and not in any way deny my family what I can give them or do for them?’ This is a decision about his family,” Harpootlian told The News Journal in Wilmington, Del.
A spokesperson for the vice president called speculation about a presidential bid premature.
“The Biden family is going through a difficult time right now,” the vice president’s spokeswoman Kendra Barkoff told the Journal. “Any speculation about the views of the vice president or his family about his political future is premature and inappropriate.”