With just seven months to go until the presidential election, speculation is rife as to a successor to Michael D Higgins.
This is the first fully open contest since 2011 and the main parties are weighing up their strategies while independents are evaluating their options.
Behind the scenes, political parties and potential candidates are doing "temperature checks" according to one party official.
However, most are reluctant to reveal their intentions at this stage with a "game of chicken" under way.
There have even been some public declarations of interest from possible party nominees as well as independents courting the backing of political parties.
Calls to potential contenders over the past few days yielded a motley of similar responses along the lines of "not ruling myself out at this stage".
Clearly, inclusion in any list of runners and riders is flattering and it is nice to be talked about.
But most are also aware of the bruising nature of Presidential contests with so much resting on individual character.
Previous campaigns have seen both serious and tenuous historic infractions revealed.
This election is not for the faint-hearted.
Nominations
Candidates need the backing of 20 members of the Oireachtas or four councils to get on the ballot paper.
In practice, this gives political parties a major advantage, but some outsiders have made it through the council route in recent years.
However this time round, there is a key change in the dynamic. Fine Gael is definitely fielding a candidate while Fianna Fáil has not decided on its approach.
If both larger parties decide to contest the election, the council route is going to be extremely tough to crack for independents.
Fianna Fáil
The official position is that Fianna Fáil has not yet decided its strategy for the presidential election and whether it will run its own candidate.
However, insiders have poured cold water on the idea that the party would field an agreed nominee with Fine Gael.
Other parties, however, view it as likely that Fianna Fáil will contest the election for the first time since 2004.
So far, names circulating include MEPs Barry Andrews and Cynthia Ní Mhurchú.
Mr Andrews has not commented but Ms Ní Mhurchú issued a statement to RTÉ News saying that she is focused on her role as a MEP adding that she has not courted or canvassed the party for a nomination.
As for former taoiseach Bertie Ahern, he also has not ruled himself out when asked directly.
But others believe his candidacy would bring old controversies to the surface and would ultimately be too divisive.
Fine Gael
Fine Gael is definitely on for this contest with Tánaiste Simon Harris confirming this week that the party's executive will meet next month to decide the nomination process.
So far there is no shortage of names including former EU Commissioner and MEP Mairead McGuinness who has long-held ambitions in this area.
Former minister Heather Humphreys has not ruled herself out although she did not run in the last election.
In addition, former minister and MEP Frances Fitzgerald and former tánaiste and minister Simon Coveney are suggested to be in the mix and have not ruled themselves out.
And Ireland South MEP Seán Kelly has said he will run once he gets the go-ahead from his family.
Any internal contest will be decided by an electoral college system. The weighting breaks down as 55% parliamentary party, 30% membership and 15% councillors.
This gives TDs, Senators and MEPs huge sway and party insiders say endorsements will also play a big role.
Labour/Social Democrats/Greens/People Before Profit-Solidarity
Labour leader Ivana Bacik has written to the leaders of the Social Democrats and the Green Party suggesting they should field a joint candidate.
The intention of this strategy is clear. The parties need each other to reach the required threshold of 20 Oireachtas members in order to nominate.
Since then, the group has been broadened to include People Before Profit and Sinn Féin.
An initial meeting has been described as preliminary and did not reach a resolution.
Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald has said she is open to this approach but many believe the party is more likely to nominate its own candidate, given it has the numbers to do so.
One party insider said he believed that Sinn Féin would want to have "a dog in the fight".
It is understood that Ms Bacik believes an agreed candidate should not come from any of the individual parties.
The big challenge though is for these parties to reach an agreement on both a joint campaign and on an individual acceptable to all.
This is a huge ask and while the approach makes sense in order to have influence, it could come unstuck.
Sinn Féin
In the wake of two torrid Presidential campaigns, Sinn Féin will be hoping it can turn this one around.
One compelling argument for the party in running its own candidate is the opportunity to espouse its central aim of a United Ireland and ensure that discussion is on the agenda.
So far the party has not revealed its intentions, but some names have been floating around including Northern Ireland First Minister Michelle O'Neill and MP John Finucane.
But what about party leader Mary Lou McDonald? In the wake of a disappointing general election, could she take a tilt at the Áras?
Ms McDonald definitively ruled that out yesterday and said the party was only at the early stages of any discussions.
Independents
Independent Senator Frances Black has publicly confirmed that she is open to conversations and said that she has been approached by a couple of parties.
Could she be an agreed-upon candidate from some of the left parties? Another possibility is Independent Galway West TD Catherine Connolly who has also indicated a willingness to run.
She told broadcaster Seán O’Rourke on RTÉ’s Insights podcast: "If there was a chance to unite the Opposition, then certainly, in that situation, I would keep my mind open".
Businessman Peter Casey has declared he wants to run again.
He will be hoping his campaign emulates his surprise 23% finish in the 2018 Presidential contest rather than the 3% he got in Midlands-North-West in the recent European elections.
In 2018, he secured the backing of four councils but that is a much tougher prospect this time.
The name of Independent Senator Michael McDowell has also been floated with the long-time politician also saying he was open to the idea with backing.
The question is where that support would come from with Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael likely to both be off the table.
Irish Times columnist Fintan O’Toole has also said he would not rule out a bid but that he would not do it alone.
MMA fighter Conor McGregor has also declared an interest fresh from his surprise visit to the White House.
But that bid is not being taken seriously in political circles.
For many reasons, a man that a jury in a civil case at the High Court found had raped Nikita Hand in a hotel in Dublin in December 2018 and awarded her almost €250,000 in damages, would find it next to impossible to get a nomination.
At this early stage, other names circulating include David Hall, Linda Martin and Tommy Tiernan, along with GAA President Jarlath Burns.
Most agree though that several serious contenders may not emerge until the summer when the contest will begin in earnest.
