No Labels lays out plan to pick presidential candidate

No Labels, the centrist group gunning for a third-party presidential bid, announced Thursday the process it plans to use to pick a presidential ticket. 

The group voted last week to move forward with a “unity ticket,” even as the race solidifies into a general election rematch between former President Trump and President Biden, who have met the delegate thresholds they need to score their respective party nominations. 

No Labels has now created the Country Over Party Committee, which National Convention Chair Mike Rawlings described in a launch video as a “diverse group of co-chairs and citizen leaders” in charge of identifying candidates, deliberating and proposing both a presidential and vice presidential contender.

That recommendation will then go before No Labels delegates for a nomination vote. Majority support gets the official nomination to appear on the ballot as the group’s unity ticket. 

The launch video shows 12 names under the Country Over Party Committee, including former Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.), the founding chair of No Labels; retired U.S. Navy Adm. Dennis Blair, the group’s North Carolina chair; and No Labels national co-chair Ben Chavis.

“Even though both major parties have settled on their presidential nominees, it’s clear the American people are still searching for another choice,” Lieberman said in a release.

Speculation has been swirling for months over whether the group would move forward with its own ticket and what candidates might be on the table. Former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) was considered before he announced a bid for the U.S. Senate, and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley was floated as a possible contender before she ruled out the idea.

Lieberman said earlier Thursday that the political group could announce its candidates “this spring” as early as March 21.

To be considered, a candidate must meet a “high threshold,” agree to the No Labels movement’s beliefs, and endorse the group’s policy platform, Lieberman said in the news release.

Critics have worried No Labels’s continued efforts threaten Biden as he tries for another four years in the White House.