Former Vice President Joe Biden is in the final stages of preparing for a 2020 presidential campaign that is expected to launch next month, according to multiple people familiar with his planning.
A formal kickoff is expected by mid-April and would all but cement the size and scope of the Democratic presidential field that currently stands at 12 formally declared candidates, two still in the formal exploratory stage and others still mulling a bid but waiting to see what the former veep might do.
Biden sits atop various surveys of Democrats nationally and in the key early primary states and is seen by supporters as one of the contenders best-equipped to unite factions that are squabbling over the ideological future of the party and where and who exactly it should target in a bid to retake the White House. While the 76-year old can likely expect to find support in suburban swing districts and Midwestern states key to previous Democratic presidential victories, he faces doubts about whether he can win over minority and younger voters that are fueling much of the party’s current energy and success.