Republican Horses:1. Frm. Mayor Rudy Giuliani (NY)The Jockey deserves to be slapped with a piece of piping hot New York pepperoni pizza for ignoring the polls for so long showing Rudy out front. It won't happen again. Yes, it is ridiculously early. Yes, he's hedgy on his interest. But the GOP's one bonafied rock star is dominating poll after poll after poll after poll after poll. The Jockey remains skeptical of his ability to attract enough hard core conservatives to ultimately win the nomination, but for now he's earned his spot at the head of the pack.
2. Gov. Mitt Romney (MA)Romney is the only fella in the northeast who gets more press than Patriots' quarterback Tom Brady. (And he's nearly as good looking!) The Massachusetts governor is on a legislative tear these days trying to lay down as much track as possible before making his announcement by year's end. You heard it here first race fans, one of the best bred horses in the barn is a go.
3. Sen. George Allen (VA)Allen's fall from the top is more about the other horses than his own game. A very well-placed source tells the Jockey that Allen is already running full-speed ahead and that there's "no chance" he'll change his mind. Allen clearly has more of a record than many of his fellow horses, but he also has a deadly first name: Senator.
4. Gov. Haley Barbour (MS)The jolly Mississippi governor continues to bask in the straight A's on his Katrina Management Report Card. His approval ratings are high and he's saying all the right things to conservatives. But the biggest evidence he's going to run might be this recent snippet from a Human Events interview. When asked about whether he'd run in 2008, Barbour said it was "highly, highly unlikely" yet would not rule it out. Yeah, right, and the pride of New Orleans, Ralph Nagin, will win Mayor of the Year.
5. Sec. Of State Condi Rice (AL)Condi moves through the pack as the biggest gainer from power ranking #9 to # 5 on the strength of her brilliantly conceived press tour of her home state and Dick Morris' assertion that she's the only hope to stop Billary from the White House in 2008. But her rabid fans who like to cite an Angus Reid poll showing her the leader in three states ought to remember that there are actually more than three states in the union. If all it took were three, the dashing George B. McClellan would have won overwhelmingly in 1864, instead of that Lincoln guy. So there.
6. Sen. John McCain (AZ)With the current GOP brouhaha over indictments, innuendos and stock sales, McCain earns points this week just for staying out of legal trouble. Conservatives might be hungry for anyone who's ostensibly clean come 2008. The Grey Maverick has crisscross applesauced the political aisle so many times that he might look tasty to Democrats and Republicans alike, particularly if the other candidate's name is Billary.
7. Rep. Tom Tancredo (CO)If Tancredo isn't a member of every frequent flier program known to mankind, he needs to fire his travel secretary. He's like the Energizer Bunny of immigration reform and the more he talks about it, the more the other horses in the race sound like parrots. Could a House member from Colorado really be a viable candidate two years from now? Given the stench coming from inside the Capital Beltway these days, you never know.
8. Gov. Mike Huckabee (AR)Governor Huckabee remains near the back of the pack due to his microscopic name ID. Outside his home state of Arkansas, he's most well-known for having lost over 100 pounds while in office. Quite an achievement, says the Jockey. Now if he wins in 2008 he'll be able to dance at his inaugural ball.
9. Gov. Mark SanfordIf Governor Sanford is so determined not to run for president in 2008, maybe he should stop running for president. He's traveling around the country giving speeches, keynoting events, and looking very much like someone who's started believing all the buzz.
10. Sen. Bill Frist (TN)The Jockey likes Bill Frist. The Jockey thinks Bill Frist is a good man with a good heart. But rumor has it that the Majority Leader may sign on to host a new version of The Apprentice on NBC, starting right after Martha's season finale. That can't be good.
Others receiving votes: Vice President Dick Cheney (um, no); Chuck Hagel (looks too much like a RINO?); Bill Owens (is damage control working?); Tommy Thompson (jury too far out on him?); Bob Ehrlich (has to beat a tough field in 2006 first); Newt Gingrich (hard to believe, but rising in some GOP polls); George Pataki (a giant human Unisom pill?)
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Democratic Horses:1. Sen. Hillary Clinton (NY)The hottest rumor in the Empire state is that Billary has moved so far to the right, she's considering voting for her opponent in 2006. But the rightward drift sure doesn't seem to bother democrats. As of an October 25th Marist poll, she's opened up a 24-point lead over John Kerry. Is there anyone, anyone at all not on this list that doesn't believe Billary will be the nominee in 2008? If so, the team at PoliticalDerby.com recommends immediate medical attention.
2. Sen. Hillary Clinton (NY)Like all political junkies, the Jockey desperately wants someone to challenge the junior Senator from New York. But she remains so far ahead that there's just no clear number two.
3. Gov. Bill Richardson (NM)Richardson might be #3 on this list, but he's the #1 most requested campaign buddy in the country. The New Mexico Governor is appearing for democrats as far away as Virginia in an effort to boost their campaigns and woo latino voters. The Jockey is no James Carville, but it sure looks like the nation's only latino governor is collecting chits and pesos to spend in 2008. He remains Billary's biggest threat--for now.
4. Sen Evan Bayh (IN)Bayh has approval ratings that any politician would kill for. In fact, some would break knees just to have HALF his 80-percent. And while he's not the flashiest or most glib of the dem horses, he might be just what the polarized electorate is looking for in 2008. And as one of our loyal fans likes to remind us on a daily basis, Bill Clinton once said he couldn't wait for the day he could vote for Bayh for president. Wonder if Bill slept on the couch that night...
5. Frm. Sen. John Edwards (NC)Edwards noses ahead a few spots after several polls suggest democrats actually remember his name. The one-time trial lawyer turned one-term Senator turned one-time Vice Presidential candidate is obviously angling to be a one-time Presidential candidate as well. Sources say he made quite a splash in Florida recently wiping the dust off his 2004 "Two Americas" speech. Those in attendance say the speech was great, his hair was perfect, and his teeth were freshley whitened.
6. Gov. Tom Vilsack (IA)The Jockey had thought Vilsack's only asset was being a governor from the midwest. But according to our friends at Google, the words "Vilsack" and "moderate" appear together 49,100 times. So if the somewhat uninspiring governor can get through the liberal litmus test primaries and caucases, he might find an audience among moderate intermet users partial to Google.
7. Gov. Mark Warner (VA)The Jockey has long been saying that Wonder Boy Warner has plenty at risk in Virginia's governor's race. And according to the Washington Post: "[No] one has more riding on the outcome than Warner, a prospective 2008 White House candidate who bases his appeal to national Democrats on his ability to reach moderate and rural voters and help the party become competitive again in the South." Hey, that's what we said.
8. Sen. John Kerry (MA)The Jockey finds it hard to believe Kerry actually made the rankings, but alas, the polls don't lie. Monsieur Kerry remains surprisingly popular given the way democrats ran from him after the 2004 defeat. Stranger things have happened, but it seems unlikely he'll get another crack at it.
9. Sen. Joe Biden (DE)Biden hangs on the list because he has a coveted chair on the Senate Judiciary Commmittee and has gotten more face time in recent weeks than Katie Holmes. But if race fans are betting on a democratic Senator to win the nomination, it's probably not this one.
10. Frm Gov. Howard Dean (VT)Despite the incredible bully pulpit of the DNC, Dean has fallen further off the charts than JLo's latest "album." And frankly, he's no easier to listen to. Dean has time, but so far the field is rounding the first corner and he's stuck in the gate chomping on hay.
Others receiving votes: Wes Clark (slowly rising toward top ten); Al Gore (we kid because we care); Barak Obama (Billary's running mate?); Blanche Lincoln (hard to type that one with a straight face...)
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