By Sofia Ferreira Santos, BBC News
ReutersUS President Joe Biden has assured Democratic donors he can still win November’s presidential election against Donald Trump, after a poor debate performance fuelled concerns about his candidacy.
The 81-year-old president attended a series of fundraising events in New York and New Jersey on Saturday and defended his performance in CNN’s presidential debate.
Speaking at an event, Mr Biden admitted: “I didn’t have a great night, but neither did Trump” on Thursday.
“I promise you we will win this election,” he said.
Mr Biden’s debate performance was marked by some difficult-to-follow and shaky answers — raising new concerns among some Democrats about whether he is the right candidate to run in this high-stakes election.
Speaking to the BBC’s Katty Kay, former Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Mr Biden’s debate performance “wasn’t great” – while his former communications director Kate Bedingfield called it “really disappointing”.
The president said he understood the concern, but vowed to fight harder.
New Jersey Democratic Governor Phil Murphy attended the fundraiser alongside Mr Biden and the First Lady – and told Mr Biden that “we are all with you 1,000%”.
The Biden campaign acknowledged the debate did not go as they hoped, but said he would not bow out for another candidate.
Campaign chairwoman Jennifer O’Malley Dillon said Saturday that internal post-debate polls showed “voters’ opinions have not changed.”
“This will not be the first time that exaggerated media narratives have led to temporary drops in the polls,” she said.
Former President Barack Obama, a close friend of Mr Biden, said on social media that “bad debate nights happen”.
“This election remains a choice between someone who has fought his entire life for ordinary people and someone who only cares about himself,” Mr. Obama wrote.
Hours after the debate, Mr. Trump told his supporters that he considered the debate a “big victory” for his campaign.
“The problem with Joe Biden is not his age,” Mr. Trump, 78, said. “That’s his skill. He is grossly incompetent. »
Mr Biden’s performance has not only been criticized by political actors.
A prominent New York Times editorial described his determination to run again as a “reckless gamble” and urged him to do some soul-searching this weekend.
He said Democrats should “recognize that Mr. Biden cannot continue his race and create a process to select someone more capable to replace him.”
Voters across the United States also expressed concerns about voting for either candidate following Thursday’s debate.
Lori Gregory, a longtime Democrat, told the BBC she “couldn’t bear” to watch the debate and asked: “Is this the best our country can do?”
Republican Crystal Myers-Barber said it was “painful to watch” but added that she thought “Trump looked very balanced and presidential and Biden looked very weak.”
Democrat Shana Ziolko said she was “frustrated” watching the debate and thinks there is no clear winner.
A post-debate poll by the liberal Data for Progress found that 62 percent of likely voters who watched or read the debate thought Trump won. Only 30% of respondents said Mr. Biden won the debate.
Until more polls are conducted, the fundraising could be another indication of continued enthusiasm for Mr. Biden’s candidacy.
In a memo, chairwoman Jennifer O’Malley Dillon said the campaign had raised more than $27 million (£21.3 million) between Thursday’s debate and Friday night.
“After Thursday night’s debate, Washington voters eliminated Joe Biden. Data from key states, however, tells a different story,” she said.
“This election was incredibly close before Thursday, and by every indicator we’ve seen since, it remains just as close,” she added.
