Joe Biden’s leading primary challenger Dean Phillips has blasted his Democratic Party colleagues as “delusional” ahead of the upcoming election on November 5.
The Minnesota Congressman, who finished second with 20 per cent of the vote in New Hampshire’s primary race, urged allies to “wake up”.
Phillips said: “My party is completely delusional right now and somebody had to wake us up. And if that’s my job, so be it.”
The 55-year-old faced a barrage of criticism after launching his campaign to challenge Biden for the Democratic Party nomination in October last year.
Minnesota Congressman Dean Phillips is challenging Joe Biden for the Democratic Party nomination
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Phillips denounced claims that his candidacy weakens Biden ahead of November 5.
The centrist Democrat is hoping his White House bid will toughen Biden up ahead of his likely match-up against ex-President Donald Trump.
He claimed: “I’m trying to extend an invitation to the president to get in the game.
“If you want to be the president again, the only way to possibly win is to get out here. Listen to voters.
“The Democrats have turned over hundreds of hours of prime-time TV to the GOP.”
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Joe Biden is well-ahead of his Democratic challenger in the primary race
PAPhillips added: “If Democrats had a competitive race right now, which I’m trying to create, we would have energy.”
The Democratic Party primary race also includes campaigner Marianne Williamson.
Robert Kennedy Jr, son of Robert Kennedy and nephew of John F Kennedy, dropped out of the primary race on October 9 to stand as an independent.
A recent HarrisX opinion poll suggested Biden will likely steamroll to victory to win the Democratic Party nomination.
Biden opened up a 60-point lead over his two remaining challengers, with 69 per cent of the vote.
Donald Trump is likely to come up against Joe Biden on November 5
REUTERSWilliamson languished in a very distant second on just nine per cent and Phillips' campaign is struggling to build momentum with only four per cent supporting his bid.
A separate survey by the same pollster suggested Biden could struggle in his potential rematch with Trump.
The 45th President, who is hoping to become just the second Commander-in-Chief to serve two non-consecutive terms in the Oval Office, opened up a seven-point lead over his successor.
Such a result would likely help Trump flip Arizona, Georgia, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin back into the Republican column.
It could even bring Nevada into play for a GOP nominee for the first time since 2004.
However, Trump is facing a number of legal challenges which could threaten to derail his campaign altogether.
