CLEVELAND ― The 2016 election is four months away, but some prominent Republicans are already laying the groundwork for the 2020 presidential race.
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker and Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton are expected to address the delegations of three key early primary states ― Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina ― next week at the party’s convention in Cleveland. Both men will also deliver remarks on stage at Quicken Loans Arena on behalf of presumptive GOP nominee Donald Trump, raising their profile in front of a national audience.
Cotton, 39, is also headed to the early caucus state of Nevada later this summer to address the Second Annual Basque Fry, a popular gathering of GOP activists and community and state business leaders. Several would-be presidential candidates attended the inaugural Basque Fry in 2015.
Cotton’s background as a veteran of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as his outspoken role on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, would make him an attractive candidate.
Potential candidates usually test the waters at events like the Basque Fry, where they have a chance to meet and impress potential supporters and donors.
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz is expected to speak at the GOP convention next week as well, but he does not have any visits scheduled with early state delegations. Cruz will, however, host a delegate “thank you event” for his supporters during the convention ― fueling speculation over his future ambitions.
The conservative firebrand, who has not endorsed Trump, came closest to denying the brash businessman the nomination earlier this year by winning 559 delegates. Given his impressive grassroots operation, he would be well-positioned for a 2020 run should he decide to throw his hat into the ring once more.
Though Cruz may be keeping his head down, his allies on the influential GOP Rules Committee, which met this week in Cleveland, made a play to change the rules governing future contests in the wake of Trump’s performance in the primary.
Trump did better in “open” primary contests, where members of any party may cast a ballot, rather than in “closed” contests, where only registered Republicans can cast a ballot. Former Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, who led Cruz’s delegate operation, and Utah Sen. Mike Lee, a friend of the Texas senator, pushed for more “closed” primary contests. Their effort ultimately failed before the committee, but by a smaller-than-expected margin.
Making the laying of groundwork by possible future contenders more than a little awkward, however, is the fact that Trump may yet win the White House ― and hence choose to run for re-election in 2020. The early jockeying is further indication of the party’s tepid confidence in their own nominee months before ballots are even cast in November.
Before You Go
