Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-Texas) on Thursday jumped to second place in rankings of prospective 2020 Democratic presidential candidates created by two CNN analysts.
CNN’s Chris Cillizza and Harry Enten placed O’Rourke second on their monthly “power rankings” of potential Democratic candidates, ahead of former Vice President Joe Biden and Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.).
“O’Rourke has that thing that every candidate — Democrat or Republican — wants: organic energy,” the two analysts wrote. “He generates excitement everywhere he goes — and is being urged to run by activists from all over the Democratic base.
{mosads}”He’s the flavor of the moment, no question,” they continued. “But can he turn that initial excitement into a full-fledged campaign and sustain momentum over the next year-plus?”
O’Rourke ranks second behind only Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.). He was tenth on last month’s rankings.
Each of the candidates on the list has indicated they are weighing a presidential run, but none has formally announced whether they plan to launch a bid.
O’Rourke gained national attention after he ran an unsuccessful campaign to unseat Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas). He has met with a number of prominent Democrats in recent weeks, including former President Obama and Rev. Al Sharpton.
O’Rourke previously said he was not interested in a White House run in 2020, but has since revised his position to note that he would not rule anything out.
The Texas congressman was listed near the top of a poll earlier this month of potential 2020 Democratic candidates, along with Biden and Sanders.