NY, NJ, CT voters wonder what comes next after Biden's decision to drop
NYACK, Rockland County (WABC) -- Some voters who talked to Eyewitness News expressed relief that President Joe Biden dropped his reelection bid, but others wonder what comes next.
Jody Guitmann and her daughter, Claire, biked from Tenafly to Nyack on Monday. They got a mental workout and a physical one, thinking about who will top the Democratic presidential ticket in November.
"I walk into every single election looking at both individuals, no left-right-center," Claire Guitmann said. "How am I supposed to make an informed decision (without an official Democratic candidate)?"
Vice President Kamala Harris got the blessing and endorsement of the Commander-in-Chief. She has made it clear she plans to earn and win the nomination, but the Democratic National Convention is four weeks away and there's no guarantee she will emerge as the presidential nominee.
That uncertainty could have a ripple effect on down-ballot candidates like Democrat Mondaire Jones.
He faces Republican incumbent Mike Lawler in the battle for New York's 17th Congressional district.
"I don't think it really has that much of an impact. Voters were deeply disaffected by the policies of this administration more than anything else," Lawler said.
"This is an open process. And it is a good thing that this isn't a coronation," Jones said.
The 17th Congressional District covers a significant part of the Lower Hudson Valley. Some voters see Harris as the best candidate to top the Democratic ticket, but others aren't so sure.
"She's gonna be the nominee. And there's a bunch of great guys out there doing good stuff, the governors here and there. Shapiro. But, nah, we need a Black woman in the White House," Mitchell Wagenberg of Nyack said.
"I'm really not comfortable with any in the Democratic party at this particular point, although I am not 100-percent with Republicans but we'll have to figure out what to do," Jody Guitmann said.
In New Jersey, Gov. Phil Murphy threw his support behind Harris, telling her Monday afternoon that he would do "whatever it takes" to get her elected.
"She's ready to rock and so are we," Murphy said. "I told her that Tammy and I will do whatever she needs us to do. Whether its politics, money, picking up lunch, we will do whatever it takes."
When asked about speculation that he could be her vice president, Murphy said "I'm flattered that people have raised my name, but as you can see today, I'm all in on being the governor of New Jersey."
Murphy said he would be speaking to the state's DNC delegates when they meet Monday night, and are expected to endorse Harris.
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