President Donald Trump may have started a trend.
Since the businessman — who had never held public office or served in the military — was elected in November, rumors have swirled about other CEOs possibly running for president. The latest rumbling came
That follows other reports that Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz or media mogul Oprah Winfrey could consider making bids for president, all of them most likely on the Democratic side.
There is no indication that any of those executives will launch a bid. The speculation, though, underscores the belief that Trump's electoral success may have opened the door for more candidates who have business experience, rather than government experience.
Trump ran largely on the argument that his business background made him an outsider from an entrenched political class and would lead to him negotiate good deals for the American people. Others whose policy views differ from Trump could conceivably take up that same framework regardless.
The 66-year-old Iger does face one possible hurdle to launching a campaign. He is under contract with Disney until July 2019. Disney did not immediately respond to CNBC's request to comment on this story.
Zuckerberg has set a goal of visiting every state in the country, fueling speculation that he is laying the groundwork for a run for office. Still, the 32-year-old CEO has denied that he wants to make a bid for the presidency.
The 63-year-old Winfrey created a stir when, in a video clip released by Bloomberg earlier this year, she suggested that Trump's election had made her think she could be more qualified for office than she thought. Later in the interview, though, she said a run "won't be happening."
Starbucks, where the 63-year-old Schultz still serves as executive chairman, did not respond to a request to comment on this story.