2020 Democratic Presidential Nominee Weekly Power Rankings - January 8th, 2020

This list looks at who I believe currently has the best chance of winning the 2020 Democratic Party nomination for President. Only notable individuals who have announced they are running are included. I am not a political expert, so don’t take this too seriously. Feel free to provide feedback.


Notes for This Week:

• We are 26 days away from the Iowa Caucus. 
• Julian Castro suspended his campaign last week. He had been a long shot from the beginning, but gained a bit of traction last summer after some good debate performances. This week, he officially endorsed Elizabeth Warren and joined her on the campaign trail. Many are speculating that this is testing the waters on a Warren/Castro ticket if she gets the nomination. 
• Maybe more importantly to some, Judge Judy has endorsed Michael Bloomberg. 
• Marianne Williamson laid off her entire campaign staff, but has said that she will continue her campaign with volunteers.
• The latest tensions with Iran has been dominating the news this past week, so there hasn't been much primary news. We do have self-reported Q4 fundraising numbers from most candidates, so I will mention those below.

1. Joe Biden

Previous Ranking: 1 (-)
Credentials: Vice President of the United States (2009–2017); U.S. Senator from Delaware (1973–2009)
Notes: Biden earned $22.7 million in Q4, up significantly from his Q3 total of $15.7 million. However, that still put him in third for the quarter.

2. Bernie Sanders

Previous Ranking: 2 (-)
Credentials: U.S. Senator from Vermont (2007–Current); U.S. Representative from Vermont (1991–2007); Mayor of Burlington, Vermont (1981–1989)
Notes: Sanders had the largest quarter of fundraising for any Democratic candidate this election cycle with $34.5 million (up from $28M in Q3). He is also continuing to gain some momentum in the polls, but we're getting down the wire.

3. Elizabeth Warren

Previous Ranking: 3 (-)
Credentials: U.S. Senator from Massachusetts (2013–Current); Assistant to the President for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (2010–2011); Congressional Oversight Panel Chair for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (2008–2010)
Notes: Warren was the only major candidate to go down in fundraising for the quarter (from $24.7M in Q3 to $21.2M in Q4), but she still had the fourth best total.

4. Pete Buttigieg

Previous Ranking: 4 (-)
Credentials: Mayor of South Bend, Indiana (2012 — Current) 
Notes: Buttigieg is a fundraising machine. He had the second best quarter after Sanders, earning $24.7 million. This is over $5 million more than his Q3 total of $19.2 million.

5. Andrew Yang

Previous Ranking: 5 (-)
Credentials: Entrepreneur
Notes: Despite having his best quarter yet in fundraising at $16.5 million (a huge bump from Q3 total of $9.9M), Yang is still getting shade from the media. CNBC recently ran a graphic that had the wrong image for him and Tulsi Gabbard.

6. Amy Klobuchar

Previous Ranking: 6 (-)
Credentials: U.S. Senator from Minnesota (2007-Present)
Notes: Klobuchar was candidate with the biggest improvement in Q4. She earned an impressive $11.4 million compared to $4.8M in Q3. This can be attributed to a few factors, including strong debate performances and major competitor drop outs. Voters who are not really feeling Biden may be looking for another moderate candidate.

7. Michael Bloomberg

Previous Ranking: 7 (-)
Credentials: Mayor of New York City (2002-2013)
Notes: Bloomberg is not taking donations, funding his campaign all by himself.

8. Cory Booker

Previous Ranking: 8 (-)
Credentials: U.S. Senator from New Jersey (2013-Present); Mayor of Newark, NJ (2006-2013); Newark City Council (1998-2002)
Notes: Booker is hanging in there with $6.6 million in Q4, slightly up from his Q3 total of $6 million.

Honorable Mentions, Tier 1

• Tulsi Gabbard, U.S. Representative from Hawaii
• Tom Steyer, Billionaire

Honorable Mentions, Tier 2

• Michael Bennet, U.S. Senator from Colorado
• John Delaney, Former U.S. Representative from Maryland
• Deval Patrick, Former Governor of Massachusetts
• Marianne Williamson, Motivational Speaker & Self Help Author

General Reference Links

• Primary Polls - https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/2020-primaries/democratic/
• Party Endorsements - https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/2020-endorsements/democratic-primary/
• Candidate Media Coverage - https://fivethirtyeight.com/tag/media/

Let me know what you think about my rankings! Leave a comment below.