Will Md. governor challenge Clinton?

Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley is preparing to run for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2016 whether or not Hillary Clinton enters the race, according to three Democratic fundraisers quoted in the Wall Street Journal. 

The newspaper quotes two anonymous fundraisers who said the governor already told them flat out he would run for president in 2016. 

{mosads}When asked directly whether he would run regardless of Clinton’s decision, O’Malley said he is “not inclined to talk about that at this point.”

An aide to the governor said the fundraisers could have been mistakenly interpreted as meaning that the governor had already decided on a run, but noted his decision would come regardless of who else enters the race. 

Doug Goldman, a campaign bundler for President Obama in 2012, told the newspaper, “Martin O’Malley is making it pretty clear that his ultimate goal is president of the United States.”

He added that the governor indicated during a spring meeting that, “Yes, that’s the next step for him, that he is running.”

Clinton is a huge front-runner in early polling for the nomination due to much greater name recognition than O’Malley. 

In a July interview with the Los Angeles Times, the governor said he was “seriously considering” a run. When asked how Clinton’s decision would affect his own, he responded, “Not at all at this point.”