Even though President Joe Biden has made it official that he’s running for a second term, chatter persists among pundits about other possible Democratic White House candidates, including Colorado Gov. Jared Polis.

In the latest edition of The Washington Post’s bimonthly ranking of the top 10 potential 2024 Democratic contenders – this time listing everyone “besides Biden” – The Fix’s Aaron Blake puts Polis in third place.

The governor and former five-term congressman trails Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who sits in the pole position, and Vice President Kamala Harris, at No. 2. He’s one place ahead of Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, whose convincing reelection in November in a previously purple state mirrors Polis’ feat in last year’s midterms.

That’s up a notch from The Fix’s previous tally, which had Polis in fourth place, though it comes with a powerful proviso, with Blake noting that it appears no Democrat of stature plans to challenge Biden’s bid.

That’s despite polling that shows only roughly half of Democrats want Biden to run again, with the same share expressing qualms about his advanced age. Biden will be 86 at the end of a second term – nine years older than Ronald Reagan was when he left office in 1989.

Throw in Biden’s persistently low approval ratings and the pervasive perception surrounding the high stakes of next year’s election, and you’ve got Democrats whispering about who could step in if Biden “falters,” according to Blake.

Blake says Polis “makes sense” for many of the same reasons as Whitmer and their fellow governor Josh Shapiro, the Pennsylvania Democrat who won his first term last fall in the battleground state by a comfortable margin.

Polis trounced Republican challenger Heidi Ganahl by nearly 20 points, achieving the widest margin of victory for the office by a Colorado Democrat in 32 years. At the same time, Democrats won reelection to every statewide office by double-digit margins while increasing the party’s majorities in both chambers of the legislature and carrying the state’s new congressional district.

Blake maintains that Polis earns a spot just below Buttigieg and Harris – both sought the 2020 nomination along with Biden – because he’s “left the door a little more ajar to running one day” than Whitmer and Shapiro, who have both firmly shut down any such speculation.

Polis, a wealthy tech entrepreneur and the nation’s first openly gay candidate to win election as a governor, has been attracting presidential buzz for years, including from conservative quarters, but has consistently waved it off without quite slamming the door.

And that’s what a Polis spokesman did again this week when Colorado Politics asked for comment on The Fix’s latest ranking, including whether the door was “ajar” to a presidential run.

“It’s an honor to be mentioned – Governor Polis is focused on his second-term priorities like cutting property taxes, achieving 100% renewable energy by 2040, and saving people money on health care,” Conor Cahill said in an email.

It’s crunch time at the Colorado Capitol, with less than a week remaining in the General Assembly’s regular session and hundreds of bills – including key elements of Polis’ second-term agenda – vying to get across the finish line.

A few months ago, Polis made clear he supported a Biden reelection bid if that’s what the president decided he wanted to do.

“The president needs to be the one who decides he’s running, and I’ll be excited to support him,” Polis told NBC’s Chuck Todd, adding, “I’ll be enthusiastic if he’s enthusiastic.”