As former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden gear up for a rematch in November, speculation is growing on how former Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., might get involved.
Cheney, an avowed anti-Trumper, previously said that she will stop at nothing to keep the former president from returning to the White House.
When Nikki Haley ended her long-shot challenge of Trump for the GOP presidential nomination, Cheney reportedly launched her political action committee, the Great Task. She has also not ruled out running on an independent ticket, though she has pledged not to be a spoiler third-party candidate if it benefits Trump.
According to The Hill, some Democrats are hopeful that Cheney might publicly endorse Biden.
"If you had asked me 20 years ago, whether I thought it was a really good idea for Democrats to team up with a Cheney, I would have told you that you were drinking something," Democrat strategist Jennifer Holdsworth told The Hill. "But in this day and age, I think the more democracy-focused folks we have working towards the same goal, the better."
Despite their policy differences, Holdsworth said she would "welcome" Cheney's endorsement of Biden. Holdsworth also acknowledged how such a move could jeopardize Cheney's future in politics.
Cheney's trajectory within her own political party changed abruptly after the Jan. 6, 2021, breach of the U.S. Capitol building, when she went from a rising star to being vilified by the GOP for her refusal to back Trump.
Removed from her position as House Republican conference chair, Cheney lost her primary last cycle to a Trump-endorsed challenger and has since become one of the most recognizable faces of the anti-Trump movement after serving on the House Jan. 6 committee.
During the November 2022 midterms, Cheney reportedly used her platform to target Trump-supported Republican candidates like Mark Finchem and Kari Lake in Arizona and endorsed some Democrats, including Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich.
Since departing Congress, Cheney has penned a memoir and dug in on her criticism of Trump, leading to speculation that she might make a run for the White House. As recently as January, Cheney said she hasn't dismissed the idea.
"I haven't made a decision about that," she told "The View." "But I think it's really important, I mean, what you said — this election cycle, everybody has to go vote. Everybody has to go vote, and you've got to be willing to say, 'Look, I'm not necessarily going to vote for the candidate who belongs to the party that I belong to, I'm going to find the candidate who I know I can trust to defend the Constitution.'"
According to The Hill, some Democrats are doubtful that Cheney would run as an independent, given the possibility it could hurt Biden's chances, but the party has been left wondering about her next step.
Democrat pollster Fernand Amandi told The Hill that it's vital for Cheney to publicly endorse Biden to draw anti-Trump voters who might otherwise support a third-party ticket.
"The problem is that the specter of third-party candidates means that there could be off-ramps for anti-Trump conservatives swayed by Cheney … who might then vote third party, which would be a benefit for Trump, not Biden," Amandi said.