Its three years out.
******************
In less than three years the new president will be inaugurated in Jan. 2017.
In less than two years four states will have already held their nominating process:
Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada
So it isn’t to early to begin getting preliminary plans together for organizations, etc.
I agree with your observation.
It is still too early for actual candidates to start joining in races, but it is not too early to start preparing for races.
It’s only 7 months or so until the 2014 elections.
After that, it starts.