On Tuesday, President Joe Biden experienced his only primary loss in the cycle thus far.
In the US territory of American Samoa, Biden lost narrowly to a relative unknown: businessman Jason Palmer. It’s a surprising defeat, but not one that will have a major effect on the broader election outcome, given Biden’s overwhelming lead in the Democratic field.
It’s also not some massive referendum: Just 91 votes — total — were cast in American Samoa’s Democratic caucuses. Palmer beat Biden, winning 51 of the ballots cast to the president’s 40. Each will pick up three delegates from Tuesday’s race.
Although Palmer’s win isn’t poised to have much impact on the eventual Democratic nomination, he’s used the victory as an opportunity to emphasize the need for generational change as Biden’s age has come under growing scrutiny.
“This is the message that Joe Biden needs to hear, that the American people want to pass the torch to the next generation,” Palmer, 52, told ABC News.
According to a February New York Times/Siena College poll, 61 percent of voters who supported Biden, 81, in 2020 say he’s now “just too old” to do an effective job as president. Palmer has argued that he could be a younger alternative and offer an “outsider” perspective, having spent most of his career in business and not government.
“I know I’m a longshot candidate with very little chance of winning,” Palmer conceded on his campaign website. “As a result, our campaign is less focused on winning, and more focused on ideas, solutions and changing the conversation.”
What we know about Jason Palmer
Palmer, who is based in Baltimore, has a long list of business credentials that he touts on his LinkedIn. He was previously a partner at New Market Venture Partners, an impact investing firm (or one dedicated to funding businesses that consider social benefits), a senior vice president at the test prep company Kaplan, and a deputy director at the Bill and…
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