2016 Election: Who Might Seek The Presidency After Obama?
It has not even been one week since President Barack Obama secured another four years in the White House, but pundits are already looking ahead to who might seek to become his successor in 2016.
Obama's term limit of eight years in the Oval Office will be up by the next election, so the field will be wide open with no incumbent fighting to keep his seat.
As of now, a whole four years before the next presidential race, two of the most likely contenders are already incredibly familiar names to most Americans — Hillary Clinton and Jeb Bush.
Former first lady Clinton ran for president in 2008 but lost to Obama during the Democratic primaries. Since then, she has served as Secretary of State in Obama's cabinet, and though she has said publicly that she will step down from that post during the president's second term, nothing has become official yet.
Bush is the brother of President George W. Bush and son of President George H.W. Bush. He served as the governor of Florida from 1999 to 2007.
Both Clinton and Bush have an incredibly valuable asset looking forward to 2016 - immense name recognition. A new report from Politico said their place in famous political families could make them quite attractive to voters.
Republican strategist Alex Castellanos compared the Clinton and Bush political legacies to a well-known brand like Coca Cola.
"We love our brands - they offer certainty in a world spinning apart," Castellanos said. "The political equivalent of a brand is the dynasty, the Bushes or Clintons. And even if Coke produces New Coke, or Ford, an Edsel, now and then ... we remain loyal. We know and value what the brand stands for ... otherwise, we wouldn't want it rehabilitated."
