Win or lose, there is one sure Election Day bet for the Democrats: Wednesday brings the first day of the 2016 Democratic presidential primary race that's expected to attract Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Vice President Joe Biden and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.
Democratic officials said that none of the 2016 hopefuls will jump in fast, but will begin setting up an exploratory committee and fundraising operation starting early next year.
Sources say that Clinton starts in the best position because she can tap into her husband's organization and renew her 2008 Hillary for President effort. Former aide Terry McAuliffe told Secrets that she is unlikely to make a public grab for the nomination for at least two years, taking the time to rest after many years in public.
Biden, meanwhile, has been hinting recently about his post-Obama career and will be able to tap President Obama's equally large network.
And Cuomo, a former Clinton-era cabinet secretary, has a broad New York-based organization and can enlist his friends from his running the Housing and Urban Development department.
But those big three likely candidates are expected to be challenged by some lesser-known Democrats who offer a non-Washington driven agenda. Party insiders say that former Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh, and Virginia Sen. Mark Warner are also mulling bids.
Early version had former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm listed, but she's Canadian born, thus not allowed to run and we don't want to get into another birther issue.
