Biden predicts he probably won't win in New Hampshire

Joe Biden
(Image credit: ABC News)

Former Vice President Joe Biden kicked off Friday's New Hampshire debate with a prediction: he's not going to win the primary.

Biden spoke at the top of the debate about his disappointing fourth place finish in Monday's Iowa caucuses, admitting he "took a hit." But the former vice president took things a step further, appearing to set expectations as low as possible ahead of the Tuesday New Hampshire primary by suggesting he'll lose again.

"I took a hit in Iowa, and I'll probably take a hit here," Biden said.

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It was certainly a unique start to the event, as The Washington Post's Dave Weigel observed, "That has to be the first time that a debate began with a candidate saying he'd probably lose the state's primary."

As far as who will win, Biden suggested Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) will likely beat him, citing the fact that "Bernie won by 20 points last time, and usually it's the neighboring senators that do well." But the good news for Biden, according to Biden? "This is a long race." Brendan Morrow

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Brendan Morrow

Brendan is a staff writer at The Week. A graduate of Hofstra University with a degree in journalism, he also writes about horror films for Bloody Disgusting and has previously contributed to The Cheat Sheet, Heavy, WhatCulture, and more. He lives in New York City surrounded by Star Wars posters.