Wisconsin’s Governor Scott Walker officially threw his name in the hat for the 2016 presidential election. On Monday July 13, just a day after the governor signed the state budget into law, the governor held a rally at Waukesha’s Expo Center. The governor impressed journalists and political insiders alike, giving a 30-minute speech without a teleprompter or podium.
No matter how exceptional his memorization skills are, coming off as extraordinary in a field of 16 serious Republican candidates and scores of other less serious options will be difficult. Walker’s first chance to make himself known nationally will be on August 6 when the first Republican national debate will be on Fox News at 9 p.m./8c. With a crowded field, the rules are set so that only those candidates polling in the top 10 will be on the primetime debate stage. On August 4, debate organizers will take the average of national polls and those in the top 10 will be on the primetime debate stage. The remaining six candidates will participate in a “roundtable” debate, which will air an hour before the primetime debate. The second Republican debate will be on September 16 and CNN will host.
Governor Walker’s chances of getting in the top 10 are high. The most recent national poll has Walker in 2nd place with 13%, 11 points behind Donald Trump and just 1 point ahead of Jeb Bush. Most candidates see a bump in the polls around their announcement as media coverage around them increases, so Walker is likely to stay afloat.
Below is a list of other presidential contenders who have formally entered the race:
Republicans | Democrats |
Ted Cruz: US Senator for Texas Announced: March 23 |
Hillary Clinton: Former Secretary of State, Former US Senator for New York, Former First Lady Announced: April 12 |
Rand Paul: US Senator for Kentucky. Announced: April 7 |
Bernie Sanders: US Senator for Vermont Announced: April 30 |
Marco Rubio: US Senator for Florida Announced: April 13 |
Martin O’Malley: Former Governor of Maryland and former Mayor of Baltimore Announced: May 30 |
Carly Fiorina: Former CEO of Hewlett-Packard Announced: May 4 |
Lincoln Chafee: Rhode Island Senator (as a Republican), Rhode Island Governor (as an Independent, then as a Democrat) Announced: June 3 |
Ben Carson: Former Head of Pediatric Neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Announced: May 4 |
Jim Webb: Former US Senator for Virginia, Former Secretary of the Navy, Novelist, Film Producer Announced: July 2 |
Mike Huckabee: Former Governor of Arkansas and Fox News host Announced: May 5 |
|
Rick Santorum: Former US Senator for Pennsylvania. Announced May 27 |
|
George Pataki: Former Governor of New York Announced: May 28 |
|
Lindsey Graham: US Senator for South Carolina Announced: June 1 |
|
Ricky Perry: Former Governor of Texas Announced: June 4 |
|
Jeb Bush: Former Governor of Florida Announced: June 15 |
|
Donald Trump: Businessman, Television Personality, Author Announced: June 16 |
|
Bobby Jindal: Former Governor of Louisiana and former U.S. Congressman Announced: June 24 |
|
Chris Christie: Governor of New Jersey Announced: June 30 |
|
Scott Walker: Governor of Wisconsin Announced: July 13 |
|
John Kasich: Governor of Ohio. Announced: July 21 |