This article contains lists of candidates associated with the

2016 Democratic Party presidential primaries Presidential primaries and caucuses were organized by the Democratic Party to select the 4,051 delegates to the 2016 Democratic National Convention held July 25–28 and determine the nominee for President in the 2016 United States president ...

for the

2016 United States presidential election United States presidential election, Presidential elections were held in the United States on November 8, 2016. The Republican Party (United States), Republican ticket of businessman Donald Trump and Indiana Governor, Indiana governor Mike P ...

Major candidates

Individuals included in this section had taken one or more of the following actions: formally announced their candidacy, or filed as a candidate with

Federal Election Commission The Federal Election Commission (FEC) is an independent agency of the United States government that enforces U.S. campaign finance laws and oversees U.S. federal elections. Created in 1974 through amendments to the Federal Election Campaign ...

(FEC) (for other than exploratory purposes), and were included in at least five independent national polls. Five of the major candidates were invited to participate in at least one Democratic Party-sanctioned debate:

Lincoln Chafee Lincoln Davenport Chafee ( ; born March 26, 1953) is an American politician. He was mayor of Warwick, Rhode Island, from 1993 to 1999, a United States Senator from 1999 to 2007, and the 74th Governor of Rhode Island from 2011 to 2015. He was a ...

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...

Martin O'Malley Martin Joseph O'Malley (born January 18, 1963) is an American politician who served as the 17th commissioner of the Social Security Administration from 2023 to 2024. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he was th ...

Bernie Sanders Bernard Sanders (born September8, 1941) is an American politician and activist who is the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from the state of Vermont. He is the longest-serving independ ...

, and

Jim Webb James Henry Webb Jr. (born February 9, 1946) is an American politician and author. He has served as a United States senator from Virginia, Secretary of the Navy, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs, Counsel for the United States ...

Nominee

Candidates who won one or more contests

The following candidate won primaries and received delegates in most or all state primaries and caucuses.

Major candidates who withdrew during the primaries

The following individual announced a major candidacy for president but withdrew at some point after the

Iowa Caucuses The Iowa caucuses are quadrennial electoral events for the Democratic and Republican parties in the U.S. state of Iowa. Unlike primary elections, where registered voters cast ballots at polling places on election day, Iowa caucuses are ...

Major candidates who withdrew before the primaries

The following individuals were recognized by the media as major candidates for president but withdrew from the race after the first debate. Some received write-in votes. They are listed alphabetically.

Other candidates

On the ballot in multiple states

The following notable individuals were on the ballot in at least five states. In addition, the following other candidates were on the ballot in more than one state: *Star Locke of Texas, on the ballot in New Hampshire, Texas, and Oklahoma. received a total of 5,201 votes. *Steve Burke of New York, on the ballot in New Hampshire and Louisiana, received 4,892 votes. * Henry Hewes of New York, on the ballot in Louisiana, New Hampshire, Arizona, and Missouri, received 3,319 votes. *Jon Adams of New York is on the ballot in Missouri and New Hampshire, received 486 votes. * James Valentine of Miami Beach, Florida, on the ballot in both Arkansas and New Hampshire, received 1,710 votes. *Mark Stewart Greenstein of Connecticut was on the ballot in New Hampshire and Utah. He received 41 votes.

On ballot in a single state

; Illinois *Lawrence "Larry Joe" Cohen of Illinois (2,407 votes) *David Formhals of Illinois (25 votes) *Brian James O'Neill of Illinois (2 votes) ''Sources
Illinois Democrat
an
Candidates
from The Green Papers'' ; New Hampshire *

Vermin Supreme Vermin Love Supreme (born June 1, 1961) is an American performance artist and activist who has run as a novelty candidate in various local, state, and national elections in the United States. He served as a member of the Libertarian Party (Unit ...

of Maryland; performance artist and perennial candidate (265 votes) *David John Thistle of New Hampshire (223 votes) *Graham Schwass of Massachusetts (142 votes) *Lloyd Kelso of North Carolina (46 votes) *Eric Elbot of Massachusetts (36 votes) *William D. French of Pennsylvania (29 votes) *Raymond Michael Moroz of New York (27 votes) *Edward T. O’Donnell, Jr. of Pennsylvania (26 votes) *Robert Lovitt of Kentucky (21 votes) *William H. McGaughey, Jr. of Minnesota (19 votes) *Edward Sonnino of New York (17 votes) *

Sam Sloan Samuel Howard Sloan (born September 7, 1944), also known as Mohammad Ismail Sloan, is an American perennial candidate and former broker-dealer. In 1978, he won a case ''pro se'' before the United States Supreme Court, becoming the last non-lawyer ...

of New York; former

chess Chess is a board game for two players. It is an abstract strategy game that involves Perfect information, no hidden information and no elements of game of chance, chance. It is played on a square chessboard, board consisting of 64 squares arran ...

administrator and 2012 Libertarian Party candidate (15 votes) *Brock C. Hutton of Maryland (14 votes) *Steven Roy Lipscomb of New Mexico (14 votes) *Richard Lyons Weil of Colorado (8 votes) ''Source
New Hampshire Democrat
an
Candidates
from The Green Papers'' ; Rhode Island *Mark Stewart of New Hampshire (236 votes) ''Source
Rhode Island Democrat
an
Candidates
from The Green Papers'' ; Texas *Calvis L. Hawes of Texas (2,017 votes) ''Source
Texas Democrat
an
Candidates
from The Green Papers'' ; West Virginia * Paul T. Farrell Jr. of West Virginia; an attorney (21,694 votes) ''Source
West Virginia Democrat
an
Candidates
from The Green Papers''

Candidates not on any primary ballot

Over a thousand people sent the requisite paperwork to the Federal Election Commission declaring themselves candidates for President. Among them were the following notable people:

Alternate ballot options

Several primaries provided ballot options to voters to cast votes for "no preference" and/or "uncommitted". "No preference" received 45,331 votes (0.27% of the popular vote), and 'uncommitted' received 40,548 votes (0.24% of the popular vote), respectively placing them 4th and 5th in the popular vote.

Potential candidates who did not run

Speculated

The following people were the focus of presidential speculation in multiple media reports during the 2016 election cycle. *

Mike Beebe Mickey Dale Beebe (; born December 28, 1946) is an American politician and attorney who served as the List of governors of Arkansas, 45th governor of Arkansas from 2007 to 2015. He is to date the last Democrat to hold that office. Born in Amagon ...

Governor of Arkansas The governor of Arkansas is the head of government of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The Governor (United States), governor is the head of the Executive (government), executive branch of the Politics and government of Arkansas, Arkansas government a ...

2007–2015;

Attorney General of Arkansas The attorney general of Arkansas, usually known simply as the attorney general (AG), is one of Arkansas's seven State constitutional officer, constitutional officers. The officeholder serves as the state's top law enforcement officer and Consu ...

2003–2007 * Steve Beshear,

Governor of Kentucky The governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the head of government of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Kentucky. Sixty-two men and one woman have served as governor of Kentucky. The governor's term is four years in length; sinc ...

2007–2015;

Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky The lieutenant governor of Kentucky was created under the state's second constitution, which was ratified in 1799. The inaugural officeholder was Alexander Scott Bullitt, who took office in 1800 following his election to serve under James Garra ...

1983–1987;

Attorney General of Kentucky The attorney general of Kentucky is the chief legal officer of the U.S. state of Kentucky, created by the Kentucky Constitution (Ky.Const. § 91). Under Kentucky law, they serve several roles, including the state's chief prosecutor (KRS 15.700), ...

1980–1983Gibson, Ginger (January 21, 2015
"Election 2016: Hillary Clinton Isn't The Democrats' Only Candidate"
''

International Business Times The ''International Business Times'' is an American online newspaper that publishes five national editions in four languages. The publication, sometimes called ''IBTimes'' or ''IBT'', offers news, opinion and editorial commentary on business and ...

''. Retrieved January 21, 2015.(March 14, 2015
"21 Democrats who could (maybe) take Hillary Clinton's place in 2016"
''The Washington Examiner''. *

Jerry Brown Edmund Gerald Brown Jr. (born April 7, 1938) is an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as the 34th and 39th governor of California from 1975 to 1983 and 2011 to 2019. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic P ...

Governor of California The governor of California is the head of government of the U.S. state of California. The Governor (United States), governor is the commander-in-chief of the California National Guard and the California State Guard. Established in the Constit ...

2011–2019 and 1975–1983; presidential candidate in

1976 Events January * January 2 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 18 – Full diplomatic ...

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...

, and

1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...

* Steve Bullock,

Governor of Montana A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' ma ...

2013-2021; Attorney General of Montana 2009–2013Jason Linkins (July 13, 2014
"The Brutalist Guide To 2016's Democratic Contenders (Not Named Hillary Clinton)"
''

The Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (''The Huffington Post'' until 2017, itself often abbreviated as ''HPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and covers p ...

''. Retrieved October 2, 2014. *

Russ Feingold Russell Dana Feingold ( ; born March 2, 1953) is an American politician and lawyer who served as a United States Senate, United States Senator from Wisconsin from 1993 to 2011. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, h ...

, nominee for U.S. Senate in

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

; U.S. Special Representative for the

African Great Lakes region The African Great Lakes (; ) are a series of lakes constituting the part of the Rift Valley lakes in and around the East African Rift. The series includes Lake Victoria, the second-largest freshwater lake in the world by area; Lake Tanganyika ...

2013–2015; U.S. Senator from

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

1993–2011 *

Al Gore Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American former politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. He previously served as ...

Vice President of the United States The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest ranking office in the Executive branch of the United States government, executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks f ...

1993–2001; Democratic Party presidential nominee in

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

;

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...

from Tennessee 1985–1993 *

Christine Gregoire Christine Gregoire (; née O'Grady; born March 24, 1947) is an American attorney and politician who served as the List of governors of Washington, 22nd governor of Washington, from 2005 to 2013. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), D ...

, Governor of Washington 2005–2013; Attorney General of Washington 1993–2005"DNC Chairwoman: Hillary Only Woman Who Could Win in '16"
'' U.S. News & World Report''. May 8, 2014. Retrieved May 2, 2014.Lavender, Paige (November 27, 2013
"Bernie Sanders Reveals Why He Might Run For President In 2016"
(see "Which Women Might Run In 2016?" at bottom of article) ''

''. Retrieved May 12, 2014. *

Luis Gutiérrez Luis Vicente Gutiérrez (born December 10, 1953) is an American politician. He served as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for from 1993 to 2019. From 1986 until his election to United States Congress, Congress, he ...

, U.S. Representative from Illinois 1993–2019; Member of the

Chicago City Council The Chicago City Council is the legislative branch of the Law and government of Chicago, government of the Chicago, City of Chicago in Illinois. It consists of 50 alderpersons elected from 50 Wards of the United States, wards to serve four-year t ...

1986–1992Reid, Brandon (January 30, 2015
"Mitt Romney won’t run in 2016"
, The Rock River Times. Retrieved February 10, 2015. *

Kamala Harris Kamala Devi Harris ( ; born October 20, 1964) is an American politician and attorney who served as the 49th vice president of the United States from 2021 to 2025 under President Joe Biden. She is the first female, first African American, and ...

, nominee for U.S. Senate in

Attorney General of California The attorney general of California is the state attorney general of the government of California. The officer must ensure that "the laws of the state are uniformly and adequately enforced" ( Constitution of California, Article V, Section 13). ...

2011–2017 *

Maggie Hassan Margaret Wood Hassan ( ; ; born February 27, 1958) is an American politician and attorney serving as the junior United States senator for New Hampshire since 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Hassan was the 81st governor of New Hampshire, ...

, nominee for U.S. Senate in

Governor of New Hampshire The governor of New Hampshire is the head of government of the U.S. state of New Hampshire. The governor is elected during the biennial state general election in November of even-numbered years. New Hampshire is one of only two states, along w ...

2013–2017 *

Gary Locke Gary Faye Locke (born January 21, 1950) is an American politician, attorney, and former diplomat from the State of Washington. Locke served as the 21st governor of Washington from 1997 to 2005, where he was the first Chinese-American governor ...

, United States Ambassador to China 2011–2014;

United States Secretary of Commerce The United States secretary of commerce (SecCom) is the head of the United States Department of Commerce. The secretary serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all matters relating to commerce. The secretary rep ...

2009–2011; Governor of Washington 1997–2005 *

Jack Markell Jack Alan Markell (born November 26, 1960) is an American politician and diplomat. He had served the United States ambassador both to Italy and to San Marino. He had served as the United States ambassador to the Organisation for Economic Co-oper ...

Governor of Delaware A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' ma ...

2009–2017; Treasurer of Delaware 1993–2009Yearick, Bob (April 22, 2015
"Presidential Campaign 2016: Republican Candidates Will Appeal to Religious Voters"
, '' National Catholic Register''. Retrieved April 23, 2015. * William H. McRaven, retired

Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

and former Commander of the

United States Special Operations Command The United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM or SOCOM) is the unified combatant command charged with overseeing the various special operations component commands of the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, and Air Force of the United States A ...

Janet Napolitano Janet Ann Napolitano (; born November 29, 1957) is an American politician, lawyer, and academic administrator. She served as president of the University of California from 2013 to 2020, on the faculty at the Goldman School of Public Policy at t ...

, President of the

University of California The University of California (UC) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university, research university system in the U.S. state of California. Headquartered in Oakland, California, Oakland, the system is co ...

since 2013; U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security 2009–2013;

Governor of Arizona A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' ma ...

2003–2009 *

Jay Nixon Jeremiah Wilson "Jay" Nixon (born February 13, 1956) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the List of governors of Missouri, 55th governor of Missouri from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic P ...

Governor of Missouri A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

2009–2017; Attorney General of Missouri 1993–2009 *

George Noory George Ralph Noory (born June 4, 1950) is an American talk radio, radio talk show host. Since January 2003, Noory has been the weekday host of the late-night radio talk show ''Coast to Coast AM''. The program is radio syndication, syndicated to ...

, radio talk show host * Ed Rendell,

Governor of Pennsylvania The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star. Computer scientists and Mathematici ...

2003–2011;

Mayor of Philadelphia The mayor of Philadelphia is the chief executive of the government of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as stipulated by the Charter of the City of Philadelphia. The current mayor of Philadelphia is Cherelle Parker, who is the first woman to hold the ...

1992–2000 *

Kathleen Sebelius Kathleen Sebelius (; née Gilligan, born May 15, 1948) is an American politician who served as the 21st United States secretary of health and human services from 2009 until 2014. As Secretary of Health and Human Services, Sebelius was instrumenta ...

United States Secretary of Health and Human Services The United States secretary of health and human services is the head of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, and serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all health matters. The secretary is ...

2009–2014; Governor of Kansas 2003–2009 * Paul Strauss,

Shadow Senator The posts of shadow United States senator and shadow United States representative are held by elected or appointed government officials from subnational polities of the United States that lack congressional vote. While these officials are not ...

from the

District of Columbia Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and Federal district of the United States, federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from ...

since 1997 * Antonio Villaraigosa,

Mayor of Los Angeles The mayor of Los Angeles is the head of the executive branch of the government of Los Angeles and the chief executive of Los Angeles. The office is officially Non-partisan democracy, nonpartisan, a change made in the 1909 charter; previously, ...

2005–2013 *

Tom Wolf Thomas Westerman Wolf (born November 17, 1948) is an American politician and businessman who served as the 47th governor of Pennsylvania from 2015 to 2023. He previously served as chairman and CEO of his business, The Wolf Organization, and l ...

2015-2023; Secretary of Revenue of Pennsylvania 2007–2008

Declined

Individuals listed in this section were the focus of media speculation as being possible 2016 presidential candidates but publicly, and unequivocally, ruled out a presidential bid in 2016. *

Tammy Baldwin Tammy Suzanne Green Baldwin (born February 11, 1962) is an American politician and lawyer serving since 2013 as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States senator from Wisconsin. A member of the Democratic Party (United Stat ...

, U.S. Senator from Wisconsin since 2013; U.S. Representative from Wisconsin 1999–2013 *

Evan Bayh Birch Evans "Evan" Bayh III ( ; born December 26, 1955) is an American politician who served as the List of governors of Indiana, 46th governor of Indiana from 1989 to 1997 and as a United States Senate, United States senator representing Indi ...

from Indiana 1999–2011;

Governor of Indiana The governor of Indiana is the head of government of the U.S. state of Indiana. The governor is elected to a four-year term and is responsible for overseeing the day-to-day management of the functions of many agencies of the Indiana state gover ...

1989–1997 (endorsed Hillary Clinton) *

Michael Bennet Michael Farrand Bennet (born November 28, 1964) is an American attorney, businessman, and politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from Colorado, a seat he has held sinc ...

, U.S. Senator from Colorado since 2009; Superintendent of Denver Public Schools 2005–2009 (endorsed Hillary Clinton) *

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

2009–2017, U.S. Senator from Delaware 1973–2009; Democratic presidential candidate in 1988 and

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

(endorsed Hillary Clinton) *

Michael Bloomberg Michael Rubens Bloomberg (born February 14, 1942) is an American businessman and politician. He is the majority owner and co-founder of Bloomberg L.P., and was its CEO from 1981 to 2001 and again from 2014 to 2023. He served as the 108th mayo ...

, former

Mayor of New York City The mayor of New York City, officially mayor of the City of New York, is head of the executive branch of the government of New York City and the chief executive of New York City. The Mayoralty in the United States, mayor's office administers all ...

(2002–2013) and founder of

Bloomberg L.P. Bloomberg L.P. is an American privately-held financial, software, data, and media company headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It was co-founded by Michael Bloomberg in 1981, with Thomas Secunda, Duncan MacMillan, Charles Ze ...

Cory Booker Cory Anthony Booker (born April 27, 1969) is an American politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from New Jersey, a seat he has held since 2013. A member of the Democ ...

, U.S. Senator from New Jersey since 2013,

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

of Newark, New Jersey 2006–2013 (endorsed Hillary Clinton) *

Sherrod Brown Sherrod Campbell Brown ( ; born November 9, 1952) is an American politician who served from 2007 to 2025 as a United States senator from Ohio. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the U.S. representative for from 1993 to 2007 and the 47t ...

, U.S. Senator from Ohio since 2007; U.S. Representative from Ohio 1993–2007;

Secretary of State of Ohio The secretary of state of Ohio is an elected statewide official in the state of Ohio. The secretary of state is responsible for overseeing elections in the state; registering business entities (corporations, etc.) and granting them the autho ...

1983–1991 (endorsed Hillary Clinton) * Joaquín Castro, U.S. Representative from Texas since 2013 (endorsed Hillary Clinton) * Julian Castro,

United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development The United States secretary of housing and urban development is the head of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, a member of the Cabinet of the United States, and thirteenth in the presidential line of succession. T ...

2014–2017;

of San Antonio, Texas 2009–2014 *

George Clooney George Timothy Clooney (born May 6, 1961) is an American actor, filmmaker, and philanthropist. Known for his leading man roles on screen in both blockbuster and independent films, Clooney has received numerous accolades, including two Ac ...

, actor and filmmaker from California *

Andrew Cuomo Andrew Mark Cuomo ( , ; born December 6, 1957) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 56th governor of New York from 2011 until his resignation in 2021. A member of the Democratic Party and son of former governor Mario Cuomo, ...

Governor of New York The governor of New York is the head of government of the U.S. state of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor ...

2011–2021;

Attorney General of New York The attorney general of New York is the chief legal officer of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York and head of the Department of Law of the government of New York (state), state government. The office has existed in various forms since ...

2007–2010; U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development 1997–2001 *

Bill de Blasio Bill de Blasio (; born Warren Wilhelm Jr., May 8, 1961; later Warren de Blasio-Wilhelm) is an American politician who was the List of mayors of New York City, 109th mayor of New York City, mayor of New York City from 2014 to 2021. A member of t ...

2014-2021;

New York City Public Advocate The office of New York City Public Advocate (President of the City Council) is a citywide elected position in New York City, which is first in line to succeed the Mayor of New York City, mayor. The office serves as a direct link between the wikti ...

2010–2013;

New York City Council The New York City Council is the lawmaking body of New York City in the United States. It has 51 members from 51 council districts throughout the five boroughs. The council serves as a check against the mayor in a mayor-council government mod ...

man 2002–2009 (endorsed Hillary Clinton) *

Howard Dean Howard Brush Dean III (born November 17, 1948) is an American physician, author, consultant, and retired politician who served as the 79th governor of Vermont from 1991 to 2003 and chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) from 2005 to 20 ...

, Chairman of the

Democratic National Committee The Democratic National Committee (DNC) is the principal executive leadership board of the United States's Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party. According to the party charter, it has "general responsibility for the affairs of the ...

2005–2009;

Governor of Vermont The governor of Vermont is the head of government of the U.S. state of Vermont. The officeholder is elected in even-numbered years by direct voting for a term of two years. Vermont and bordering New Hampshire are the only states to hold guberna ...

1991–2003; presidential candidate in

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

(endorsed Hillary Clinton) *

Rahm Emanuel Rahm Israel Emanuel (; born November 29, 1959) is an American politician, advisor, diplomat, and former investment banker who most recently served as List of ambassadors of the United States to Japan, United States ambassador to Japan from 2022 ...

Mayor of Chicago The mayor of Chicago is the Chief executive officer, chief executive of city Government of Chicago, government in Chicago, Illinois, the List of United States cities by population, third-largest city in the United States. The mayor is responsib ...

2011–2019;

White House Chief of Staff The White House chief of staff is the head of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, a position in the federal government of the United States. The chief of staff is a Political appointments in the United States, politi ...

2009–2010; U.S. Representative from

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

2003–2009 (endorsed Hillary Clinton) *

Al Franken Alan Stuart Franken (born May 21, 1951) is an American politician, comedian, and actor who served from 2009 to 2018 as a United States senator from Minnesota. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he worked as an ...

, U.S. Senator from Minnesota 2009–2018 (endorsed Hillary Clinton) *

Kirsten Gillibrand Kirsten Elizabeth Gillibrand (; ; born December 9, 1966) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States Senate, United States senator from New York (state), New York since 2009 ...

, U.S. Senator from New York since 2009; U.S. Representative from New York 2007–2009 (endorsed Hillary Clinton) *

Martin Heinrich Martin Trevor Heinrich ( ; born October 17, 1971) is an American businessman and politician serving as the senior United States senator from New Mexico, a seat he has held since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, Heinrich served as the ...

, U.S. Senator from

New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...

since 2013; U.S. Representative from New Mexico 2009–2013 (endorsed Hillary Clinton) *

John Hickenlooper John Wright Hickenlooper Jr. ( ; born February 7, 1952) is an American politician, geologist, and businessman serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States Senate, United States senator from Colorado since 2021. A mem ...

Governor of Colorado The governor of Colorado is the head of government of the U.S. state of Colorado. The governor (United States), governor is the head of the Executive (government), executive branch of Government of Colorado, Colorado's state government and is cha ...

2011–2019;

Denver, Colorado Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

2003–2011 *

Tim Kaine Timothy Michael Kaine ( ; born February 26, 1958) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States senator from Virginia since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party (United States ...

, U.S. Senator from Virginia since 2013;

Governor of Virginia The governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia is the head of government of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia. The Governor (United States), governor is head of the Government_of_Virginia#Executive_branch, executive branch ...

2006–2010 (endorsed Hillary Clinton and eventual vice presidential nominee) *

John Kerry John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician, and diplomat who served as the 68th United States secretary of state from 2013 to 2017 in the Presidency of Barack Obama#Administration, administration of Barac ...

United States Secretary of State The United States secretary of state (SecState) is a member of the executive branch of the federal government of the United States and the head of the U.S. Department of State. The secretary of state serves as the principal advisor to the ...

2013–2017; U.S. Senator from Massachusetts 1985–2013; presidential nominee in

Amy Klobuchar Amy Jean Klobuchar ( ; born May 25, 1960) is an American politician and lawyer serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from Minnesota, a seat she has held since 2007. A member o ...

, U.S. Senator from

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

since 2007 (endorsed Hillary Clinton) *

Dennis Kucinich Dennis John Kucinich ( ; October 8, 1946) is an American politician. Originally a Democratic Party (United States), Democrat, Kucinich served as U.S. Representative from Ohio's Ohio's 10th congressional district, 10th congressional district fro ...

, U.S. Representative from Ohio 1997–2013; presidential candidate in

, and

; Mayor of Cleveland, Ohio 1977–1979 *

Dannel Malloy Dannel Patrick Malloy (; born July 21, 1955) is an American politician who served as the 88th governor of Connecticut from 2011 to 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he chaired the Democratic Governors Association from 2016 to 2017. In Ju ...

Governor of Connecticut The governor of Connecticut is the head of government of Connecticut, and the commander-in-chief of the U.S. state, state's Connecticut Military Department, military forces. The Governor (United States), governor has a duty to enforce state laws, ...

2011–2019; Mayor of Stamford 1995–2011 * Joe Manchin, U.S. Senator from West Virginia since 2010,

Governor of West Virginia A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' ma ...

2005–2010 (endorsed Hillary Clinton) *

Claire McCaskill Claire Conner McCaskill (; born July 24, 1953) is an American former politician who served as a United States Senate, United States senator from Missouri from 2007 to 2019 and as State Auditor of Missouri, state auditor of Missouri from 1999 to ...

, U.S. Senator from

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

2007–2019; Auditor of Missouri 1999–2007 (endorsed Hillary Clinton) * Chris Murphy, U.S. Senator from

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

since 2013; U.S. Representative from Connecticut 2007–2013 (endorsed Hillary Clinton) *

Michelle Obama Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama ( Robinson; born January 17, 1964) is an American attorney and author who served as the first lady of the United States from 2009 to 2017, being married to Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United Stat ...

First Lady of the United States First Lady of the United States (FLOTUS) is a title typically held by the wife of the president of the United States, concurrent with the president's term in office. Although the first lady's role has never been Code of law, codified or offici ...

2009–2017 *

Deval Patrick Deval Laurdine Patrick (born July 31, 1956) is an American politician who served as the 71st governor of Massachusetts from 2007 to 2015. He was the first African Americans, African-American Governor of Massachusetts and the first Democratic Pa ...

Governor of Massachusetts The governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the head of government of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The governor is the chief executive, head of the state cabinet and the commander-in-chief of the commonw ...

2007–2015 *

Kasim Reed Mohammed Kasim Reed (born June 10, 1969) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 59th List of mayors of Atlanta, mayor of Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia's state capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), ...

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

2010–2018 *

Robert Reich Robert Bernard Reich (; born June 24, 1946) is an American professor, author, lawyer, and political commentator. He worked in the administrations of presidents Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter, and he served as United States Secretary of Labor, Se ...

, United States Secretary of Labor 1993–1997 (endorsed Bernie Sanders) *

Howard Schultz Howard D. Schultz (born July 19, 1953) is an American businessman and author who was the chairman and chief executive officer of Starbucks from 1986 to 2000, from 2008 to 2017, and interim CEO from 2022 to 2023. Schultz owned the Seattle SuperS ...

, Chairman and CEO of

Starbucks Starbucks Corporation is an American multinational List of coffeehouse chains, chain of coffeehouses and Starbucks Reserve, roastery reserves headquartered in Seattle, Washington. It was founded in 1971 by Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegl, and Gor ...

1988–2018 Schultz, Howard (August 6, 2015
"America Deserves a Servant Leader"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

''. Retrieved August 6, 2015. * Brian Schweitzer,

2005–2013 (endorsed Martin O'Malley) *

Jeanne Shaheen Cynthia Jeanne Shaheen ( ; née Bowers, born January 28, 1947) is an American politician and former educator serving since 2009 as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from New Hampshire. A ...

, U.S. Senator from New Hampshire since 2009; Governor of New Hampshire 1997–2003 (endorsed Hillary Clinton)Merica, Dan (April 24, 2015
"Here are the senators who have already endorsed Hillary Clinton"

CNN Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...

. Retrieved April 25, 2015. *

Mark Warner Mark Robert Warner (born December 15, 1954) is an American businessman and politician serving as the senior United States senator from Virginia, a seat he has held since 2009. A member of the Democratic Party, Warner served as the 69th gove ...

, U.S. Senator from

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

since 2009;

2002–2006 (endorsed Hillary Clinton) *

Elizabeth Warren Elizabeth Ann Warren (née Herring; born June 22, 1949) is an American politician and former law professor who is the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States senator from the state of Massachusetts, serving since 2013. A mem ...

, U.S. Senator from Massachusetts since 2013; Special Advisor to the President 2010–2011

Major candidates

Nominee

Candidates who won one or more contests

Major candidates who withdrew during the primaries

Major candidates who withdrew before the primaries

Other candidates

On the ballot in multiple states

On ballot in a single state

Candidates not on any primary ballot

Alternate ballot options

Potential candidates who did not run

Speculated

Declined

See also

Notes

References

External links