(DailyVantage.com) – With two candidates now having officially declared their candidacy for 2024, former President Donald Trump and his Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley, it is becoming more likely that we will see something reminiscent of the overcrowded 2016 Republican field.
Other big names in the GOP are also expected to announce their bids for the presidency relatively soon. Among those names being floated around are Larry Hogan, former moderate Republican Governor of Maryland; Senator Tim Scott, who would be the first African American to join the race; former Vice President Mike Pence; and, of course, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.
The idea of having a repeat of 2016, where there were 16 Republicans all vying for office, is leaving some GOP Senators feeling rather unsettled.
Senator Mike Rounds, in an interview with The Hill on Tuesday, said that “…we were all concerned with the fact that we had 15 or 16 or 17 individuals vying for attention in the last one.” Rounds went on to express his apprehension about seeing a repeat of such a crowded field.
Senator John Corynyn (R-TX) expressed concerns over Trump emerging victorious from such a chaotic GOP primary saying “I do worry about that”.
So far, though, Republican members of the Senate have been reluctant to support any candidate so far. In total, only five GOP Senators have endorsed Trump’s 2024 bid: Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), Eric Schmitt (R-MO), Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), and J.D. Vance (R-OH).
Others, though, have remained cautious about getting behind a candidate with the 2024 election still being quite a ways away.
Concerns that the 2024 field will even remotely resemble the congested 2016 field, however, remain largely unfounded. Though there is plenty of time to go, it doesn’t appear that anywhere near 16 candidates will enter the race.
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