The increasingly crowded 2024 Republican presidential field is up to 12 relatively well-known contenders. The latest to declare his candidacy is former Texas Rep. Will Hurd, who entered the race Thursday.
Hurd singled out both President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump in his announcement, saying Biden would win re-election if Trump secured the GOP nomination. Trump has a big lead in polls of Republican primary voters.
The ex-congressman joins several other presidential hopefuls who have thrown their hats in the ring this month. Miami Mayor Francis Suarez launched his bid last week, and two weeks ago, former Vice President Mike Pence, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and current North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum all formally kicked off their campaigns.
Meanwhile, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin said last month that he won’t be on the presidential campaign trail in 2023 because of elections to his state’s legislature in November, but he appears to have left the door open to a 2024 White House run.
Below is MarketWatch’s list of Republican presidential contenders and the status of their candidacies.
Trump grabbed the spotlight this month as he pleaded not guilty on June 13 following his federal indictment on 37 charges, including unauthorized retention of classified documents and obstruction of justice.
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On the Democratic side, Biden officially launched his re-election campaign in April, even as most Americans don’t approve of his performance. The president has been talking up the strong job market and his legislative record.
The first official debate of the GOP presidential primary is slated to be held in Milwaukee on Aug. 23. The Republican National Committee said there will be a second debate on Aug. 24 if “enough candidates qualify to make it necessary.”
The list above features relatively high-profile names, but there are lesser-known GOP presidential hopefuls as well, such as Aaron Day, who is known in part for his 2016 run against former Sen. Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire, a fellow Republican; Perry Johnson, a former gubernatorial candidate in Michigan; Steve Laffey, a former mayor of Cranston, R.I.; and former Montana Secretary of State Corey Stapleton.
A number of other Republican politicians have also been talked about as potential 2024 contenders but haven’t said they are running. That group includes Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, who has passed on speaking in the key primary state of Iowa; John Bolton, a former national-security adviser and former ambassador to the United Nations; former Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming, who has run an ad in New Hampshire, another key state; South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem; and former Rep. Mike Rogers of Michigan.
Among the prominent Republicans who have said they’re not seeking their party’s presidential nomination in 2024 are Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu.
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Democrats are closing ranks behind Biden, although author and activist Marianne Williamson has said she’s seeking the party’s nomination again and vigorously defended her decision to challenge the president in an extensive question-and-answer session with MarketWatch. Antivaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is also mounting a long-shot challenge to Biden and held a kickoff event for his campaign in April.
Among third-party candidacies, Cornel West, a former Ivy League professor now at Union Theological Seminary, has announced he’s a presidential candidate for the People’s Party. In addition, a group called “No Labels” has been considering a “unity ticket” for 2024, saying that a rematch between Biden and Trump would be “the sequel that no one asked for,” but a Politico report said the group would not submit a third-party challenger if DeSantis becomes the Republican nominee.
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Robert Schroeder contributed.