Speculation about the 2016 presidential election began even before President Obama took the oath of office at the start of his second term. Political analysts have spent a good amount of time predicting and monitoring potential front-runners. Now, their speculations are being confirmed or denied with the commencement of the primary elections. Politicians seeking their party’s nominations have announced their presidential bids in the past few weeks. Here we will take a look at those who have publicly declared their intentions to make it to the White House and those who are missing from the official lineup thus far.
The Republican Roster
As of now there are four main candidates officially battling it out for the Republican ticket: Senator Ted Cruz from Texas, Senator Rand Paul from Kentucky, former Governor of Florida Jeb Bush, and Senator Marco Rubio from Florida. Additionally, on Monday, May 4, Carly Fiorini, a former chief executive of Hewlett- Packard, and Ben Carson, a neurosurgeon announced their bids for office. Neither has had any political experience, and they will both be considered “long- shots” throughout the primaries. According to a Huffington Post chart that combines the latest opinion polls and is updated whenever a new poll is released, Jeb Bush is the front-runner of the pack with 15.2 percent of the vote.
However, the candidates who have officially announced their campaigns are not the only ones included in these polls, nor are they the only ones included in discussions regarding the Republican ticket. Politicians who are expected to run but have not yet declared their campaigns are brought into the conversation as well. Scott Walker, the governor from Wisconsin, has a big conservative following, a super PAC established, and is riding high in early public opinion polls on the race. However, he has not yet announced his candidacy.
Another notable Republican who was expected to make a bid for the nomination, Chris Christie, the governor of New Jersey, is also missing from the official roundup. While Christie was a huge face of the Republican Party for the past few years, his chances for the Presidential nomination have been disputed countless times due to the 2013 “Bridgegate” scandal which his administration was embroiled in and the constant criticism over his weight. Nonetheless there is still talk revolving around a possible presidential bid, and he is included in these polls and discussions as well.
The Deal with the Democrats
While there is no clear Republican front-runner and there are multiple Republicans who can still be expected to make a bid for the nomination, the Democrats find themselves in a completely different situation. When Hillary Clinton lost the nomination during the primaries in 2008, it was essentially a given that if she were to make a bid for the ticket in 2016 it would be hers to lose. Although a second Democrat, Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, announced his candidacy on April 30th, the primary so far is considered to be a one- woman show.
At first glance this can be seen as an advantage for the Democratic Party. If there is a candidate who is hardly opposed and bound to secure the nomination, all efforts can be focused to ensure the candidate is ready for the general election. However, Democrats face some serious challenges with Hillary as their only real candidate. For starters, there is not one unified Democratic front in favor of Hillary. It is not like she would be getting the nomination because she was the unanimous choice, but because there really were no other Democratic options. Some say that, in a way, Hillary’s candidacy is an unfortunate glimpse into a lack of Democratic leadership.
Additionally, progressives in the party do not think that Hillary would be pushing enough of a progressive agenda and say that they would have favored a candidate like Elizabeth Warren, the progressive Senator from Massachusetts. Bill de Blasio, the progressive mayor of NYC, made headlines when he did not publically endorse Hillary, claiming that he wants to hear her stance on multiple issues including income inequality before he makes any sort of decision.
In the following weeks, we will see if the tides change and whether more players will join the field on both the Republican and the Democrat sides. Whatever the case, in the next few months leading up to the election, this country will abuzz with talk of 2016. As many of the issues that will be brought up will be important to not just the nation at large, but to our specific college campus, the Observer will be following along to lend a voice to the conversation.