UNITED STATES (REUTERS) - When former United States vice-president Joe Biden misspoke last Saturday (March 16), saying "I have the most progressive record of anybody running", Democratic supporters eager for him to run for president rose to their feet and applauded.

After coming close to declaring himself a presidential candidate, Mr Biden quickly corrected himself.

"Of anybody who would run... I didn't mean," Mr Biden said at the dinner for Delaware Democrats in Dover. He then repeated himself. "Of anybody who would run."

Mr Biden has said he was still deciding whether to run for president in 2020 but would do so "in the near term".

Should he enter the race, the 76-year-old would join a jam-packed field of more than a dozen Democratic candidates hoping to challenge President Donald Trump.

Mr Biden would also find himself at the centre of a debate among Democrats about whether their party would best be led in the November 2020 vote by a political newcomer or a seasoned veteran.

Having served two terms as vice-president after decades in the US Senate, Mr Biden would have the advantage of name recognition.