Barack Obama
Hillary Clinton
This article contains lists of candidates associated with the 2016 Democratic Party presidential primaries for the 2016 United States presidential election.
Individuals included in this section had taken one or more of the following actions: formally announced their candidacy, or filed as a candidate with Federal Election Commission (FEC) (for other than exploratory purposes), and were included in at least five independent national polls.
Five of the major candidates were invited to participate in at least one Democratic Party-sanctioned debate: Lincoln Chafee, Hillary Clinton, Martin O'Malley, Bernie Sanders, and Jim Webb.
The following candidate won primaries and received delegates in most or all state primaries and caucuses.
The following individual announced a major candidacy for president but withdrew at some point after the Iowa Caucuses.
The following individuals were recognized by the media as major candidates for president but withdrew from the race after the first debate. Some received write-in votes.[5] They are listed alphabetically.
The following notable individuals were on the ballot in at least five states.
In addition, the following other candidates were on the ballot in more than one state:
Sources: Illinois Democrat and Candidates from The Green Papers
Source: New Hampshire Democrat and Candidates from The Green Papers
Source: Rhode Island Democrat and Candidates from The Green Papers
Source: Texas Democrat and Candidates from The Green Papers
Source: West Virginia Democrat and Candidates from The Green Papers
Over a thousand people sent the requisite paperwork to the Federal Election Commission declaring themselves candidates for President.
Among them were the following notable people:
Several primaries provided ballot options to voters to cast votes for "no preference" and/or "uncommitted". "No preference" received 45,331 votes (0.27% of the popular vote), and 'uncommitted' received 40,548 votes (0.24% of the popular vote), respectively placing them 4th and 5th in the popular vote.[2]
The following people were the focus of presidential speculation in multiple media reports during the 2016 election cycle.
Individuals listed in this section were the focus of media speculation as being possible 2016 presidential candidates but publicly, and unequivocally, ruled out a presidential bid in 2016.