The calendar hasn’t yet closed on 2016, but increasingly the politics are turning to 2018, as Republican Nicholas Morse of Fort Collins tells me he’s thinking about running for state treasurer.

A former treasurer of the Larimer County Republican Party, Morse made his first run for elected office this year, losing to U.S. Rep. Jared Polis of Boulder in the 2nd Congressional District. That was in a difficult district-read, dang-near impossible-for a Republican against a well-financed, well-known incumbent.

In a treasurer’s race in two years, it’s an open field. Current Treasurer Walker Stapleton was elected in 2010 and is barred from running for the office a third time by term limits. Plus, Stapleton is the odds-on favorite to be the GOP nominee for governor.

I asked Morse about the rumor on Twitter, and he sent me an e-mail about it Thursday.

“I wanted to put out a quick statement saying I have been asked to consider running for the state treasurer position in 2018,” he said.  “It is a position that I am interested in and something that I am going to put some considerable thought towards over the next six months.”

Morse reportedly was urged by President-elect Donald Trump’s campaign staff in Colorado to get in the race.

“Having previous experience as the GOP Larimer County treasurer, running for Congress and my professional background I believe all would suit the office well,” he said. “Our state faces serious financial problems that require forward-leaning and unique solutions to the liabilities we currently hold, such as PERA. I hope to present some of these ideas into the public sphere in an effort to help lead the conversation about a solid path forward for Colorado. It is too early to decide if I am going to compete in this race, but I will make a decision over the next six months, hopefully at the latest by the summer of 2017.”

Morse, 30, was a marketing executive with Madwire Media in Loveland/Fort Collins but left in June to pursue politics full-time. He received his undergraduate degree from Colorado State in 2009 and an MBA from Grand Canyon University in 2013.

Here is an interview Morse did ahead of the November election with CTV anchor Willis Scott at CSU.