This article was written well ahead of scheduled publishing in order to accommodate my travel plans.

Maybe I’m just too caught up in baseball’s off season moves, but I can’t help but think of “the bench”. Today I’d like to briefly look at the Democrat’s “national bench”. I’m among the people who thinks the Democrats need a youth movement, therefore I’m just looking at people who will be at least 35 (the Constitutional minimum age for president) but less than 60 on Election Day 2024.

I certainly could be incorrect but I don’t see Nancy Pelosi serving out her full next term and thereby assume her leadership position will be vacated soon. I have no inside information about Joe Biden running for reelection, but it is certainly safe to say that he may not. OK, now we have the “ground rules”.

In no particular order here are some Democrats to consider along with their 2024 Election Day ages in parentheses:

Pete Buttigieg (42) He’ll make another run at the presidency some day, will it be 2024?

AOC (35) I like her smarts and policies a lot! Looks shouldn’t matter but unfairly for a woman they do and she is certainly attractive. I think she is too far left to be nationally electable or perhaps statewide even in blue New York. Best she sticks to the House and look for a committee chairwomanship in the future.

Cory Booker (55) Every time I hear him speak I ask myself why he isn’t president. He seems to be a total package but gets caught up in a “traffic jam” of philosophically similar candidates.

Tim Ryan (51) I know he lost his Senate race but his stock still went way up. He received basically zero help from national Democrats and seems to be the current maverick of the Party. Keep an eye on him as a wild card.

Hakeem Jeffries (54) Definitely a creature of the House and I expect him to move up when Nancy exits.

Pramila Jayapal (59) This is a tough one! She is as sharp as they come but not having been born in America she is somewhat limited. She is obviously ineligible for the top two spots and I’d never consider her for Speaker because that would be giving up a succession spot. She is effective and influential as the Chair of the Progressive Caucus. Perhaps that is where she has to stay.

Kamala Harris (60) If a youth movement is on, 2024 (or 2028 if Biden runs in ’24) may be her last shot at the top spot. Whether fairly or unfairly, she has not proven to be a popular Veep so her future is extremely cloudy.

Amy Klobuchar (64) Again the age thing with ‘24/’28 being her last shot. I think she is super and coming from the middle of the country will be palatable to many in the electorate who will not vote for what they view as a costal elite. If she stays in the Senate the only move up there is to Schumer or Durbin’s spots. I see no signs of that happening anytime soon.

Stacey Abrams (50) I think her days of running for office have reached the end but I doubt she agrees. I don’t see her winning statewide or nationally but that won’t stop her from throwing her hat in the ring. Many quietly lobby for the number 2 spot; she all but ran commercials for it.

Beto O’Rourke (52) Much like Stacey his “star” has extinguished itself. He is one heck of an exciting speaker and would best serve the cause as a surrogate and fundraiser. He is more likely that Stacey to take that course.

Brian Schatz (52) Other than political junkies the immediate response to his name is, “Who?”. He is the Senator from Hawaii. Unfortunately, he is not well known so I think he may be limited to the upper chamber.

Chris Murphy (51) Only slightly better well known than Schatz is the Senator from Connecticut. Smart and articulate, his prime issue is gun safety. He may never be “The Man” but he represents the depth of the Democrats’ bench.

Jon Ossoff (37) He is a baby by political standards (where 50 is young). Ossoff needs to continue keeping his head down and just doing his job without being either flashy or controversial. Then he needs to get reelected to the Senate in 2026 and then we’ll see.

Gavin Newsome (57) That package has a lot in it! Coming from California this polished politician has name recognition, good looks and can raise a ton of money. America likes to elect governors so if Biden opts not to run in 2024 a lot of Democrats will jump on the Newsome bandwagon.

Gretchen Whitmer (53) She was just reelected governor of Michigan, defeating a Trump backed candidate by a fair margin. She has been the target of right wing extremists including a kidnapping and murder plot. Again, I hate to say it but she isn’t exactly hard on the camera. Sorry that it is, but it’s a factor especially with female candidates.

Josh Shapiro (51) Newly elected the Governor of Pennsylvania I doubt he wants to move on soon but keep an eye on him. I think anti-Semitism is still a factor in many American elections but thankfully it is a diminishing one.

That’s a brief overview. I’m sure I missed a few players. Now if the Rays can just get a left handed hitting everyday firstbaseman.

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