(Getty)
Millions of Americans headed to the polls on Tuesday to cast their ballots. As a bitter and contentious presidential election comes to a close, the cycle will reset for another four years.
The next presidential election is November 3, 2020. Regardless of the outcome of tonight’s election, many are speculating who could run in 2020.
On the Democratic side, a highly possible contender is vice president nominee Tim Kaine whose political résumé includes stints as a U.S. senator, Virginia governor, Richmond mayor and chairman of the Democratic National Committee. Other possibilities include anti-Wall Street crusader Elizabeth Warren, New Jersey senator and former Newark mayor Cory Booker, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and California attorney general Kamala Harris who is the favorite to win a U.S. Senate seat.
GOP nominee Donald Trump shook up the political system, and the Republican party when he became the nominee. Many Republican candidates have already laid a foundation for 2020 by embracing or rejecting the real estate mogul.
This past cycle saw 17 Republicans contend in the primary, and a number of the losers appear to be positioning themselves in the 2020 race, including Texas Sen. Ted Cruz. Other possible candidates include Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, House speaker Paul Ryan, Ohio Ohio Gov. John Kasich and Florida Senator Marco Rubio.
Is a re-match of the 2016 presidential election possible? According to Newt Gingrich, Former Speaker of the House and one of Donald Trump’s closest advisors, it could be.
“The challenge for everybody’s going to be, ‘What if he gets 48 or 49 percent?’” Gingrich said in a video interview for Politico. “And what if he says: ‘You know, I like this campaign and stuff. I ain’t leaving’? There will then be a Trump Party.”
If Trump does not emerge as the victor of tonight’s election, will he make another run? While there is reason to believe this could be his only presidential endeavor, others such as Gingrich indicate he may consider running again.
“I think that’s very possible,” Gingrich told Politico last month. “I think he likes being part of a movement — he likes thinking of it as a movement. … I was thinking about this, [and] he said to me the other morning, … ‘I sent out one tweet and 15,000 people showed up.’”
If Trump loses, and runs again in 2020, then yes, that could mean a re-match of 2016. However, there are also many other scenarios that are likely to play out.
