November 2020 may seem a long time in the future, but in terms of the political calendar it's really not.

Political analysts say over the next several months, serious candidates will likely at least have to start visiting states like Iowa and New Hampshire, start exploratory committees and even start fundraising if they want to run for a higher office.

So who's running?


There are at least two oft-talked about current officeholders right here in New York in Governor Andrew Cuomo and U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand. Both at various points over the last year had indicated they were focused on their current offices not the country's highest.

The governor, in no uncertain terms, said this week he is ruling out running for president. Gillibrand's tune however has changed right after her reelection this month.

Analysts said playing coy or denying interest, even if a candidate changes his or her mind later, can be politically expedient.

"As a presidential candidate, everything you do is viewed at that point in a political lens and not viewed as you're actually doing your job and it's good or bad,” said Republican political strategist Jeff Williams. “But it's unfortunate that that's what happens and that's why people try to hold off their announcements.”


"There's really no downside to them going back on their word," said Jacob Neiheisel, a Democratic political analyst. “You'll be in the news cycle for a little bit. Hey they said this other thing before and that will be the end of it and people have a fairly short attention span really.”

Another reason the analysts said candidates will play their cards close to the vest is because that announcement day is often when they receive the most publicity. They don't want to make it too early and become an afterthought as we get closer to the election.

They do believe the governor when he said he's not running, at least for now. Both suggested Cuomo doesn't see a strong path to the presidency and he's a cagey enough politician to understand that.


There's also the matter of the Gateway tunnel between New York City and New Jersey, the governor's trying to get federal funding for. Having President Trump as an ally on that of course would be beneficial, and the two met about it this week.