Iowa congressional candidates Christina Bohannan, Sarah Corkery call on Biden to withdraw

Two of Iowa's Democratic congressional candidates are calling on President Joe Biden to end his campaign for president.

Iowa’s 1st District Democratic candidate Christina Bohannan became the first prominent, active Iowa Democrat to urge Biden to drop out.

In an emailed statement Thursday afternoon she cited concerns she's heard from Iowans "that it seems he is not up to the task of a strong, vibrant campaign that will provide a compelling vision for our future."

Shortly after Bohannon’s statement, 2nd District Democratic candidate Sarah Corkery sent reporters a prepared statement calling on Biden to "pass the baton to Vice President (Kamala) Harris."

After a halting debate performance against former President Donald Trump June 27, Democrats nationwide have expressed anxiety about continuing with 81-year-old Biden as the nominee.

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Biden and his campaign have said he plans to stay on the ballot and tried to quell any concerns about his age and ability to do the job another four years by doing a blitz of campaign events, TV interviews and phone calls with prominent Democrats.

According to a running count by the New York Times, 12 U.S. representatives and one U.S. senator have called on Biden to leave the race.

Former U.S. senator from Iowa, Tom Harkin, had scathing words for Biden after the debate. In a private letter that was later published, Harkin called the debate a disaster.

However, other than Harkin, Iowa Democrats — including Corkery — had largely said it's up to Biden to decide whether to stay in the race.

Corkery previously said she didn't think anyone was encouraged by Biden's debate performance, but "he alone needs to make that decision; not Sarah Corkery, but I hope he's getting good counsel.”

She seemed to reverse that position on Thursday.

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"I have the utmost respect for President Biden," she said. "He was the right person to lead the country over the last four years and his legacy will be remembered forever. And now it's time for him to pass the baton to Vice President Harris. She will continue the fight to keep our democracy alive."

Corkery said she changed her position because constituents she's spoken with say they feel strongly that it's time for change.

Bohannan, in her emailed statement wrote that the country deserves a better choice for president than Biden versus Trump in a high-stakes election.

"The easy thing to do at this moment would be to stay silent," Bohannan said.

“Over the past couple of weeks, people all across Iowa have shared with me their grave concerns about President Biden — that it seems he is not up to the task of a strong, vibrant campaign that will provide a compelling vision for our future,” her statement reads. “I owe it to them to speak my mind. It is time for President Biden to withdraw from this campaign and pass the torch to a new generation of leadership.”

Ryan Melton, a Democrat running in the heavily Republican 4th Congressional District, referred to a social media post he made on July 2, in which he said questions of Biden's mental fitness are warranted but did not call for Biden to drop out of the presidential race. Melton said Harris, as the vice president, is "the only option" for an alternative to Biden if he does drop out of the race.

Melton also said the questions being asked about Biden's mental competency should also be asked of Trump.

“I think it’s fair to question Biden’s fitness to serve a second term, just as I think it’s fair to question Trump’s. I think we deserve more transparency regarding medical records, cognitive tests, etc. from both," Melton said. "... I do think it’s very telling that the Republican Party thinks Biden’s cognitive health is fair game while not questioning Trump’s. His lies, threats, unrestrained racism, and inability to answer simple questions all suggest he’s lost his grasp of reality."

Tom Barton and Caleb McCullough of the Gazette-Lee Des Moines Bureau contributed to this report.