It may be 16 months before voters select the next president of the United States, but the presidential campaign has been underway for more than a year. While Democrats may yet have a more significant contest if Vice President Joe Biden decides to join the fray and challenge current front runner Hillary Clinton, Republicans have created a political mosh pit featuring 36 declared candidates and filled with no shortage of pointed invective. Of the 36 Republicans, 17 are considered serious contenders. As usual, those contenders have descended on early primary and caucus states, chumming through New Hampshire, Iowa and South Carolina in search of support and generating plenty of news along the way.