Vice President JD Vance and California Democrat Gov. Gavin Newsom lead a wide-open field in their party's respective primaries for the 2028 presidential ballot, according to a CNN poll released Sunday.
Although roughly half of Americans say they have already given the next presidential election at least some thought, about two-thirds haven't gotten so far as to have any possible candidates in mind yet.
Those who do have a candidate in mind named 65 different people who they would like to see make a run for the presidency. Most of the potential candidates were mentioned by 1% of respondents or less.
The next presidential race is set to be the first since 2016 without a sitting president vying for the nomination on either side.
Among Republicans and GOP-leaning independents, 22% named Vance, 4% named Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and 2% named Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Another 3% say they would like President Donald Trump to make another run for the White House, even though he is barred by the two-term limit proscribed by the 22nd Amendment.
Among Democrats and Democrat-leaning independents, 11% named Newsom, 5% named former Vice President Kamala Harris, 4% named New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and 2% named former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
Two percent would like former President Barack Obama to make another run, even though he is also barred by the 22nd Amendment.
Respondents were asked to describe what attracted them to their chosen candidate or, for those without a candidate in mind, what traits, attributes, and viewpoints they are looking for in a president.
Personal qualities dominated the lists in both groups, with fewer seeking specific positions on issues or ideology.
Topping the list were a range of positive traits: honesty, compassion, and empathy; a desire to help people; and integrity, values, and ethics.
Americans who have a candidate in mind are fairly evenly split between those thinking of a more Republican or conservative potential candidate (16%) and a Democrat or liberal-leaning one (14%).
The CNN poll was conducted Dec. 4-7 among 1,032 American adults and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.
Brian Freeman ✉
Brian Freeman, a Newsmax writer based in Israel, has more than three decades writing and editing about culture and politics for newspapers, online and television.
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