Terry McAuliffe is spending 2018 on a cross-country tour promoting the next generation of Democratic governors — and hyping himself a little along the way.

The former Virginia governor has already held fundraisers for candidates in swing states like Michigan and Ohio. He’s in talks about trips to Iowa, South Carolina and Nevada — key early states in the presidential nominating process — and helping out Stacey Abrams, who hopes to be the first Democrat to win Georgia's governor’s race in two decades.


McAuliffe insists the activity has nothing to do with a potential run for president in 2020, saying that the midterms are his priority and that fellow Democrats have paid too little attention to state politics for too long. Republicans currently hold 33 governorships and 32 state legislatures, relegating Democrats to observer status in many states over the past decade, with huge implications on a range of policies and potentially the next round of redistricting, a favorite subject of McAuliffe’s.

"For me, it's the governors where all the action is happening across the country, and I want to make sure that we elect Democratic governors," McAuliffe said in an interview, adding: “The future of our party for the next decade is going to be determined this November with the governors.”

But McAuliffe’s gubernatorial roadshow is also introducing him to local officeholders, donors and party activists around the country, who are regaled with his achievements as Virginia’s governor alongside the exhortation to help their gubernatorial candidate. McAuliffe’s decades in Democratic politics have already built him a wide political network — but if he does decide to run for president, the 2018 campaigning is cementing a base of contacts and accomplishments beyond his most prominent association, with Bill and Hillary Clinton.

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"I know Terry has an interest in running for president, and obviously this would be a step toward promoting that interest,” said former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell. “But I think he might be doing this even if he decided not to run for president, because he's a good Democrat."

Ohio Democrat Richard Cordray has been an early beneficiary of McAuliffe’s fundraising spree. So has Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo, who faces a tough reelection fight. McAuliffe is set to travel to New Mexico next week on behalf of Rep. Michelle Lujan Grisham, the state's newly minted Democratic gubernatorial nominee.

He has also helped the Democratic Governors Association, hosting a fundraiser at his home in February, and has a position with the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, which is focused on preparing Democrats to influence the next round of political map-drawing around the country. The whole effort “coincides with the hat I'm wearing as the state chair of engagement for the NDRC,” McAuliffe said, “to get fair maps in this country so that we can run competitive elections.”

Plans are in the works to help more candidates in the coming months, including Georgia’s Abrams. McAuliffe has also been in talks with Iowa Democrats about boosting Fred Hubbell’s candidacy following his primary win, and he is looking to travel to Nevada to aid new nominee Steve Sisolak, according to a Nevada Democrat with knowledge of the discussions.

In South Carolina, Democratic nominee James Smith's team has been in contact with McAuliffe and his team about a possible trip to the state.

"We look forward to meeting with him when circumstances allow and establishing a relationship," Smith campaign manager Michael McCauley said.

McAuliffe has mostly avoided taking sides in the sometimes nasty primaries dividing Democrats this year, instead reaching out to state parties or candidates soon after primaries with an offer to help the nominee. But he made an exception in Michigan, where he headlined a May fundraiser for Gretchen Whitmer, a former state legislator favored by the party establishment. She faces an August primary.

And occasionally, McAuliffe has appeared on behalf of state parties, not candidates. In April, he spoke at a Texas Democratic Party fundraising reception alongside Julian Castro, the former San Antonio mayor and Housing and Urban Development secretary. In May, McAuliffe headlined an event for the Louisiana Democratic Party.

While the parties get to collect money and some of McAuliffe’s boundless energy, McAuliffe gets something out of it too, touting his own record as he expands his contacts and connects with up-and-coming Democratic politicians. At the fundraiser for Whitmer in Michigan, McAuliffe gave a technocratic speech highlighting his accomplishments as governor of Virginia, according to a state Democrat with knowledge of the event. McAuliffe was also introduced to "prominent donors" there and later met with Michigan Supreme Court candidates.

In the interview, McAuliffe stressed his belief that Democrats need to "build the farm team" in state and local office. The sentiment is appreciated by others aware of the wide-ranging significance of the large midterm slate of governor’s races.

“Those of us in the Democratic Governors Association always wished the national party would give more attention to the governor’s races because, quite frankly, many of our presidential candidates have come from the ranks of the governors," former Washington Gov. Gary Locke said. "The governor races are very important. They have greater significance now, given the gridlock in Washington, D.C.”

That’s why McAuliffe deflects any public talk of 2020 this year.

"I have been doing this since 1979," McAuliffe said. Democrats too often get "all galvanized on presidentials, and then we go dormant for years."

