As Democrats aim to rebound following stunning setbacks in the 2024 elections, the race for Democratic National Committee chair is very publicly heating up.

Getting less attention, but also starting to quietly commence, are moves by Democratic politicians who may have national ambitions in the next White House race.

And while 2028 may seem like a long way away, recent history shows that the early moves in the next White House race start, well, very early.

The unofficial starting gun for the 2024 race was fired by then-former President Donald Trump less than two months after leaving the White House, with a CPAC speech that teased his eventual 2024 presidential campaign.

BUTTIGIEG FUELS 2028 SPECULATION BY DOING THIS

A few weeks later, the first visits to the key early voting states of Iowa and New Hampshire by potential GOP presidential contenders were also underway.

Fast-forward four years, and expect similar actions by Democratic politicians who may harbor national ambitions. With the soon-to-be 82-year-old President Biden exiting the national stage, and Vice President Kamala Harris, in the wake of her defeat by Trump, in no immediate rush to decide her political future, the road to the 2028 nomination may be wide open.

VANCE IN ‘CATBIRD SEAT,' BUT HERE ARE THE OTHER REPUBLICANS WHO MAY ALSO RUN IN 2028 

"The jockeying for 2028 took a brief pause when Harris became the nominee and looked to be in a strong position, which would have meant shutting out potential candidates for the next four to eight years. Now, though, it’s wide open, and it won’t be long before we see clear maneuvering from a litany of candidates," seasoned Democratic political strategist Chris Moyer told Fox News.

Moyer, a veteran of a handful of presidential campaigns, noted that "this will include travel to states like New Hampshire and South Carolina and Nevada, presumably under the auspices of helping candidates in the midterms. Democratic voters in the early states will soon want to find someone they can get excited about and a future to look forward to in the midst of the misery of another four years of Trump in the White House. These potential candidates will be more than happy to oblige."

The results of the 2026 midterm elections will have a major impact on the shape of the next White House race.

For now, however, here is an initial look at Democratic Party politicians considered to be potential 2028 presidential contenders.

Vice President Kamala Harris

As the 60-year-old Harris finishes up her final weeks as the nation's vice president, early polling in the 2028 Democratic nomination race indicates that she would be a front-runner, thanks in part to her name recognition within her party.

While any decisions on her next political steps are months away, sources in the vice president's orbit confirm to Fox News that top aides are divided on whether Harris should run again for the White House in 2028, or instead launch a 2026 gubernatorial campaign in her home state of California, which would likely prevent her from seeking the presidency two years later.

While there are plenty of voices within the party who would like to move on from the Biden/Harris era following Trump's sweeping victory, and there is little history of Democrats yearning for past defeated presidential nominees, Trump has re-written the rules when it comes to defeated White House contenders making another run. 

And potential buyers' remorse of a second Trump administration could boost Harris in the years to come.

Gov. Gavin Newsom of California 

California Gov. Gavin Newsom was a top surrogate for President Biden during the president's re-election bid. With the blessing of the White House, the two-term California governor debated then-Republican presidential candidate and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis last year on Fox News. 

Newsom's travels on behalf of Biden brought him to New Hampshire and South Carolina, two crucial early voting states on the Democratic Party's nominating calendar.

After the vice president, his friend and fellow Californian, replaced Biden atop the Democrats' 2024 ticket, the governor continued — after a pause — his efforts to keep Trump from returning to the White House.

With Trump's election victory last week, Newsom became one of the Democratic Party leaders getting ready to lead the opposition. The governor announced that California state lawmakers would meet to quickly take legislative action to counter Trump's likely upcoming agenda.

The 57-year-old Newsom, who is term-limited, completes his duties in Sacramento at the end of next year, right around the time the 2028 presidential election will start to heat up.

Gov. JB Pritzker of Illinois

Illinois Gov JB Pritzker, similar to Newsom, is already taking steps to Trump-proof his state.

"You come for my people, you come through me," Pritzker told reporters of his efforts to protect Illinois.

Pritzker was also a high-profile surrogate on behalf of Biden and then Harris during the 2024 cycle. Those efforts brought Pritzker to Nevada, a general election battleground state and an early-voting Democratic presidential primary state, and New Hampshire.

However, before he makes any decision about 2028, the 59-year-old governor must decide whether he will run in 2026 for a third term steering Illinois.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan

Two-term Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer grabbed plenty of attention and became a Democratic Party rising star in 2020 when she feuded with then-President Trump over COVID pandemic federal assistance and survived a foiled kidnapping attempt.

Trump, at the time, called her "that woman from Michigan."

Along with Newsom and Pritzker, Whitmer's name was floated as a possible replacement for Biden following his disastrous debate performance against Trump in late June, before the president endorsed Harris and the party instantly coalesced around the vice president.

Whitmer was a leading surrogate for Biden and then for Harris and made a big impression on Democratic activists during a stop this summer in New Hampshire on behalf of Harris.

The governor is term-limited and will leave office after the end of next year.

Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania

Gov. Josh Shapiro, the 51-year-old first-term governor of Pennsylvania, was on Harris' short-list for vice presidential nominee.

Even though the vice president named Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate, Shapiro remained a top surrogate on behalf of his party's 2024 national ticket. 

However, his two-day swing in New Hampshire during the final full week ahead of Election Day did raise some eyebrows and 2028 speculation.

After Harris lost battleground Pennsylvania to Trump, there was plenty of talk within the party that Harris had made the wrong choice for her running mate.

Shapiro, who has a track record of taking on the first Trump administration as Pennsylvania attorney general, is expected to play a similar role with the former president returning to the White House.

The governor will be up for re-election in 2026.

Gov. Wes Moore of Maryland

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore is considered by many to be another Democratic Party rising star.

The 46-year-old Army veteran, Rhodes Scholar and CEO of the charitable organization the Robin Hood Foundation during the coronavirus pandemic was elected two years ago.

Moore will be up for re-election in 2026.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who surpassed expectations during his 2020 Democratic presidential nomination run, was a very active surrogate on behalf of Biden and later Harris, during the 2024 cycle.

He helped raise a lot of money for the Democratic Party ticket, including heading a top-dollar fundraiser in New Hampshire.

The 42-year-old former South Bend, Indiana, mayor and former naval officer who served in the war in Afghanistan, is considered one of the party's biggest and brightest stars. He was known as a top communicator for the administration, including making frequent appearances on Fox News.

Gov. Andy Beshear of Kentucky

The 46-year-old Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, who was elected governor in 2019 and then re-elected in 2023 in red-state Kentucky, was also on Harris' larger list for running mate.

Beshear made plenty of new friends and contacts as he ventured to New Hampshire last month to headline the state Democratic Party's annual fall fundraising gala.

Beshear served as Kentucky's attorney general before running for governor.

Sen. Raphael Warnock of Georgia

Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock, 55, will likely be a major player in Washington as the Democratic minority in the Senate fights back against the second Trump administration.

Warnock, who won Senate elections in 2020 and 2022 in battleground Georgia, served as senior pastor at the famed Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, where Martin Luther King Jr. once preached.

He is up for re-election in the Senate in 2028.

Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey

New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker, who ran for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, is considered one of the party's most talented orators.

Thanks to his 2020 run, Booker made plenty of friends and allies in such early states as New Hampshire and South Carolina.

The senator is up for re-election in 2026.

Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut

Since the November election, Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut has been very vocal about the steps Democrats need to make to win back working-class voters.

First elected to the House in 2006 and to the Senate in 2012, Murphy cruised to re-election this year by nearly 20 points, which means he won't have to decide between a re-election bid and a White House run in 2028.

Rep. Ro Khanna of California

Rep. Ro Khanna, 48, was a tireless surrogate on behalf of Biden and then Harris. 

He has been a regular visitor to New Hampshire in the past couple of years, including a high-profile debate last year against then-GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York

The progressive rock star and best-known lawmaker among the so-called Squad of diverse House Democrats in October turned 35, the minimum age to run for president.

Some Democrats argue that a riveting messenger with star power is needed as the party's next nominee, and Ocasio-Cortez is guaranteed to grab plenty of attention if she ultimately decides to run.

Mark Cuban

Another potential contender with plenty of star power is Mark Cuban.

The billionaire business mogul and part-owner of the NBA's Dallas Mavericks’ was a high-profile surrogate for Harris during her presidential election campaign.

Gov. Roy Cooper of North Carolina

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, 67, who is finishing up his eighth and final year as governor, took his name out of the Harris running mate speculation early in the process this summer.

Cooper served 16 years as North Carolina's attorney general before winning election as governor.

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico

New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, 65, is halfway through her second term steering New Mexico.

The governor, a former member of Congress, was a high-profile and busy surrogate on behalf of Harris during the final weeks of the 2024 campaign.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz

The 60-year-old Minnesota governor, who served as Harris' running mate, has two years remaining in his second term in office.

While the vice presidential nominee's energy and enthusiasm on the campaign trail this year impressed plenty of Democratic strategists, the final results of the election will make any potential future national run for Walz difficult.

Two other names keep coming up — Gov. Phil Murphy of New Jersey and former Chicago mayor, former congressman, former White House chief of staff and current ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel.

With former president and now President-elect Trump term-limited and constitutionally unable to run again for the White House in 2028, Vice President-elect JD Vance is on a glide path to be the heir apparent to the America First movement and the Republican Party's powerful MAGA base.

It was a point driven home by Donald Trump Jr., the former and future president's eldest son and powerful ally of the vice president-elect.

"We are getting four more years of Trump and then eight years of JD Vance!" Trump Jr. said on the campaign trail in Ohio a few weeks ahead of November's election.

Plenty of Republican politicians, strategists and pundits agree that Vance, who was elected to the Senate in Ohio just two years ago, will likely be the clear frontrunner in the next Republican presidential nomination race.

HERE ARE THE DEMOCRATS WHO MAY RUN FOR THE WHITE HOUSE IN 2028

"The vice president will be in the catbird seat. No question about it," longtime Republican consultant Dave Carney told Fox News Digital. 

Carney, a veteran of numerous Republican presidential campaigns over the past four decades, said Vance "is the guy to beat."

David Kochel, another longtime GOP strategist with plenty of presidential campaign experience, told Fox News that Vance is the frontrunner due to "the size and the scope of last week's victory and the implied passing of the torch from Donald Trump."

"There will be no shortage of people looking at it. But most people looking at it are seeing the relative strength of the Trump victory and the movement," Kochel said.

And with Trump's support in a party firmly in the president-elect's grip, the 40-year-old Vance will be extremely hard to knock off. 

However, Kochel noted that "nobody will completely defer to JD Vance. There will be a contest. There always is."

Carney added that "there may be other people who challenge him [Vance]… there’s a lot of people who want to be president, but it will be a very hard lane other than the Trump lane."

He added that a possible rough four years for the Trump/Vance administration would give potential Vance challengers "opportunities."

However, he praised the vice president-elect's messaging and accessibility on the campaign trail and that "he is the guy to beat, regardless of whether it’s a good four years or a rough four years."

Carney also touted that the Republican Party has a "deep bench." 

Republican National Committee chair Michael Whatley, a top Trump ally, said in a recent Fox News Digital interview that he's "very excited about the bench that we have in the Republican Party right now."

Pointing to Trump's remaking of the GOP, Whatley added that "as we go into 2028, we are in a great position to be able to continue the momentum of this agenda and this movement."

But he also emphasized that regardless of Vance's likely frontrunner status as 2028 nears, the RNC will hold to its traditional role of staying neutral in an open and contested presidential primary.

Here's a look at some of those on the bench that may have national aspirations and ambitions in 2028, or beyond.

The conservative governor of Florida was flying high after a landslide re-election in 2022, but an unsuccessful 2024 presidential primary run and a bruising battle with Trump knocked Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis down in stature.

However, the term-limited 46-year-old governor, who has two years left in office steering Florida, proved over the past few years his fundraising prowess and retains plenty of supporters across the country.

DeSantis was also able, to a degree, to repair relations with Trump, helped raise money for the GOP ticket during the general election, and earned a prime time speaking slot at July's convention.

It's likely that DeSantis, who sources say Trump has considered as a plan B for Defense secretary if his nominee Pete Hegseth runs into trouble, has his eyes on another White House run.

The popular conservative governor is one of the few in the GOP who can claim he faced Trump's wrath and not only survived, but thrived.

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, who is term-limited, has two years left in office and enjoys strong favorable ratings in a crucial battleground state.

Expect to see the 61-year-old Kemp on the campaign trail across the country for fellow Republicans in 2026, as his national profile expands.

With his 2021 gubernatorial victory – the first by a Republican in Virginia in a dozen years – Gov. Glenn Youngkin instantly became a GOP rising star.

In Virginia, governors are limited to one four-year term, which means Youngkin has one year left in office. 

The 58-year-old governor, who hails from the Republican Party's business wing but has been able to thrive in a MAGA-dominated party, likely harbors national ambitions. 

A first step could be a Cabinet post in the second Trump administration after his term as governor ends.

Sen. Ted Cruz was the runner-up to Trump in the blockbuster 2016 Republican presidential battle.

The controversial conservative firebrand passed on challenging Trump again in 2024, as he ran for what was thought to be another difficult re-election bid, after narrowly surviving his 2018 re-election.

However, the 53-year-old senator ended up winning a third six-year term in the Senate by nearly nine points.

The Army veteran, who served in combat in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars before becoming a rising star in Republican Party politics, was considered to be on the larger list of potential Trump running mates.

The now-47-year-old Sen. Tom Cotton seriously mulled a 2024 White House run of his own before deciding against it in late 2022, putting his young family ahead of political ambitions. However, he did not rule out a future presidential bid.

Cotton is currently bidding for the GOP conference chair, the number three leadership position in the incoming Senate Republican majority.

The 44-year-old Sen. Josh Hawley, along with Cotton, is another rising conservative star in the Senate. 

Hawley is also a strong defender of Trump's America First agenda and is thought to have national aspirations.

The former two-term South Carolina governor, who served as U.N. ambassador in Trump's first term, was the first GOP challenger to jump into the race against the former president in the 2024 nomination race. 

Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley outlasted the rest of the field, becoming the final challenger to Trump before ending her White House bid in March.

While the 52-year-old Haley ended up backing Trump in the general election, her earlier clashes with the now president-elect during the primaries left their mark. Even though she addressed the GOP faithful at the convention, her political future in a party dominated by Trump is uncertain.

The first-term conservative governor of Arkansas is a well-known figure in MAGA world, thanks to her tenure as Trump's longest-serving White House press secretary during his first administration.

The 42-year-old Sanders, the daughter of former Arkansas governor and former two-time presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, has also grabbed national attention for delivering the GOP's response to President Biden's 2023 State of the Union address.

The multimillionaire biotech entrepreneur, anti-woke crusader and first-time candidate was one of the biggest surprises during the GOP presidential nomination race.

The now 39-year-old Vivek Ramaswamy, who touted during his campaign that he and Trump were the only two "America First candidates" in the large field of contenders, eventually dropped out of the race and became a major backer and surrogate for the former president.

He's now teaming up with billionaire Trump supporter and pal Elon Musk to steer DOGE, the new presidential advisory commission that will look to make massive cuts in the federal budget.

Others to keep your eyes on include Sen. Marco Rubio, who ran for the 2016 nomination and was nominated to serve as secretary of state in the second Trump administration; Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, who ran unsuccessfully for the 2024 nomination but remains very popular; and Sen. Rick Scott of Florida and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who both mulled but decided against presidential runs this past cycle.

Also, not to be ignored – top Trump supporters Rep. Byron Donalds of Florida and Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York, whom Trump picked to serve as U.S. ambassador to the U.N., and South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, who was named to head the Department of Homeland Security

Then there is Donald Trump Jr., the president-elect's eldest son and MAGA warrior. However, the younger Trump is very close to Vance, which would likely prevent him from making any White House bid in the next cycle.

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.