DecodeDC

Actions

What separates 2016 candidates from those still sitting on the sidelines?

Posted at 2:25 PM, May 29, 2015
and last updated 2015-05-29 14:25:27-04

There are 10 official 2016 presidential candidates in the field, but there are just as many lurking in the wings. So with a surge of campaign launches in the past month, why are inevitable candidates still hanging in the wings?

GOP pols such as Jeb Bush, Scott Walker, Rick Santorum and Chris Christie are discussed alongside the ever-swelling field of 2016 hopefuls as if they had already declared.

Same for Democrats such as Martin O’Malley. But it isn’t just FEC paperwork that separates the candidates with the could-be’s.

The rules on campaign (or non-campaign) expenditures, donors and Super PACs all change when a candidate becomes official, which has been a particularly useful loophole as campaign finance laws shift.

There is one thing we know about the big names in the 2016 mill, official candidate or not — they’re all running for president.

[Related: Can Beyonce deliver for Hillary Clinton in 2016]

Want to keep up with all the latest DecodeDC stories and podcasts? Subscribe to the podcast on iTunes and sign up for our weekly newsletter at decodedc.com/newsletter.