ST. PAUL, Minn. – President Donald Trump may only be in his second month in office, but one Democrat is already assessing the field for the 2020 election.
According to a POLITICO report, a political action committee associated with former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley recently polled Democrat caucus voters in Iowa. The poll pitted O’Malley against multiple familiar faces including Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ), former Housing Secretary Julian Castro, Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D-NY), Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), and Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA). Business leaders like Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg and Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz were also included in the polling.
O’Malley, who ran against Hillary Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) in the primaries, came out on top with 18 percent of the vote. Booker followed with 17 percent, and Klobuchar with 11 percent. No other candidates garnered double digit support. Nearly one-third of Iowans polled said they were “not sure” who they would like to see as the Democratic candidate.
Some high-profile Democrats are notably missing from the list of contenders, including Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), and Sanders.
Multiple political outlets have considered Klobuchar for 2020. Alpha News reported on some of the speculation early in the year. Since then, other outlets, including The Washington Post, have included Klobuchar on their short lists.
In a list of 11 potential female Democratic challengers, The Washington Post ranked Klobuchar fourth likely to run and win the nomination. Democratic Iowa caucus-goers in O’Malley’s poll appear to be more optimistic about the Senator’s chances.
Klobuchar has yet to respond to any of the speculation.
