Former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick (D) announced he was entering the presidential race on Thursday. While he filed for the New Hampshire state primary ahead of its Friday deadline, Patrick missed earlier filing deadlines in Alabama and Arkansas.

 

Patrick joins 17 other notable candidates in the Democratic primary. That number could soon grow as former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (D) continues to file for several state primaries without formally announcing his candidacy.

 

These late entries reflect a field more in flux than the 2016 Democratic primary, where the last notable entrant was law professor Larry Lessig in September 2015.

 

At this point in the 2016 election cycle, there were just three Democratic candidates: former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Sen. Bernie Sanders, and former Gov. Martin O’Malley.

 

On the Republican side, former South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford departed the race on Tuesday. Four notable candidates remain in the running: incumbent President Donald Trump and challengers businessman Roque De La Fuente, former Rep. Joe Walsh, and former Gov. Bill Weld.

 

Fifteen Republicans were still candidates on this day four years ago. Lousiana Gov. Bobby Jindal was the next candidate to withdraw on Nov. 17, 2015.