Now that the midterm election is done that means Americans get to stop, take a breather and brace themselves for the next election.

Are you done? Okay, good because the 2016 presidential election is about to get kicked into high gear, which means for political junkies like myself we have two years of campaigning to look forward to.

President Barack Obama’s presidency is done and over with for the country and especially all the potential 2016 candidates. Obama has effectively been a lame duck since his reelection in 2012.

So who’s going to be the next person to occupy the White House? Let’s take a look at some potential candidates from the Democrats and Republicans.

Hillary Clinton

Any discussion about 2016 would not be complete without the woman who will easily be the most experienced candidate to run for president ever: former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

There’s no doubt that Clinton is ready to lead the country, but she has to overcome the drag that the current occupant of the White House has created for their party. To do that, Clinton will need to run as an anti-Obama candidate who is competent, seasoned and, most importantly, be a leader.

If Clinton can do all of that and embrace a more populist message she will be a force to be reckoned with come 2016.

Elizabeth Warren

There are numerous progressives within the Democratic Party that despise the idea of a Hillary presidency. This small but vocal group want Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren to challenge Clinton.

Warren preaches a populist message that focuses on breaking up the big banks and finding a way to lower student debt. These can be very attractive ideas for poorer Americans and students.

Like any Democrat thinking about running in 2016 there’s one giant obstacle: Clinton. However, Clinton has been embracing Warren and her ideas. This could be an attempt from the former first lady to kill Warren’s potential campaign with kindness.

May be instead of running for president, Warren should work to become Clinton’s choice for veep. An all female ticket would be too tempting for the Democrats.

Other Democrats

There’s plenty of Democrats that are thinking of running in 2016, but again they would have to challenge Clinton, which only someone with ulterior motives will do.

Regardless if Clinton has a challenger from her own party, she will have one from the GOP.

Rand Paul

Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul is emerging as the face of Republican Party, and he could become president.

Paul has a brand that could rally young people to him. He’s pro-pot and anti-war, two areas young people find appealing.

The senator also occupies the conservative wing of his party. Combining young people and conservatives could be a formula for success in 2016.

Jeb Bush

Yes, another Bush may take a stab at running for president. F

ormer Florida Gov. Jeb Bush could be the Republican Party’s answer to Clinton. Bush comes from a political dynasty; is moderate on numerous issues; and would occupy the establishment candidate in the GOP primary.

Oh and he brings with him a long list of donors. Money is key in politics and Bush could use this to his advantage.

Other Republicans

The field for the Republicans is going to be very large, but it’s going to be divided into two major areas: establishment Republicans versus conservative Republicans.

If the party goes with an establishment candidate, like Bush or even New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, they would be following a long list of establishment candidates that go on to the general election. However, this list has many losers, including former Gov. Mitt Romney and Arizona Sen. John McCain.

There’s also risks with nominating a very conservative candidate, like Texas Sen. Ted Cruz. This person could alienate a majority of the country and give the Democrat a landslide victory.

A lot can happen in the next two years, but I would bet that America’s choice for president will be Clinton vs. Bush or Clinton vs. Paul. All I know for sure is that the next two years are going to be exciting to watch.