Sen. Joe Manchin urged President Joe Biden on Sunday to end his re-election campaign, marking another major shift in the Democratic Party’s stance on Biden’s viability in the upcoming election.

Manchin, an independent from West Virginia who joined the Democrats but left the party earlier this year, expressed his concerns during an interview with “This Week” co-host Martha Raddatz.

He said he made his decision “with a heavy heart” and acknowledged that the growing number of Democrats calling for Biden to resign after last month’s debate has made the situation increasingly difficult for the president.

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“The first week after the debate, I thought the president needed time to evaluate and make a decision if he was going to do that at that point, and then I thought, well, we’re going to hear from my colleagues who are in very difficult, challenging areas of the country, whether it’s in Congress, in terms of their districts, or in the states, in terms of my senators, and they’re speaking out now. And then when you see the donor class, basically, speaking out and saying they’ve gone in a different direction, if you will,” Manchin said.

Manchin argued that if Biden were to drop out now, he would be able to focus on tackling a series of crucial issues that he has prioritized, including unifying the country, ending the conflict in Gaza and helping Ukraine resist the Russian invasion.

Manchin also stressed that with this step, Biden can show the world that the transfer of power from the world’s largest superpower is taking place in an orderly manner.

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“He’s going to go down in history with a legacy that no one else knows, as one of the best and truly a (patriotic) American,” Manchin said. “So, with that in mind, I come away with a heavy heart to think that the time has come for him to pass the torch to a new generation.”

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