Here are the 10 best candidates to cohost 'Live' with Kelly Ripa when Michael Strahan leaves

There are plenty of people who could take the seat next to Kelly Ripa on "Live."

For the second time in four years, the syndicated show is going to whittle down a pool of people to find the perfect morning sidekick. And with Michael Strahan leaving early amid what seems like behind-the-scenes drama for the daytime show, the clock is ticking.

The drill will be the same as before: Ripa will share the show with a revolving door of guest cohosts. It took months and about 60 contenders before "Live" landed on former NFL player Michael Strahan in 2012.

The stakes are high. "Live" is currently the No. 2 syndicated show in daytime TV. And all involved, from producer ABC to the local affiliates, don't want that to sink any lower.

Naturally, there will be repeat contenders from the last round and new people who express their desire to fill the role this time around (we see you, Bow Wow).

Here's a look at some strong potential candidates who could take the seat next to Ripa:

(Note: Since the show has always kept the duo to a male and a female, we're looking at only men for Ripa's sidekick.)

SEE ALSO: Kelly Ripa finally returned to 'Live" and had some words for ABC over Michael Strahan's exit

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Anderson Cooper

CNN host Anderson Cooper is reportedly one of Kelly Ripa's top choices for the spot. They're good friends, so the chemistry would already be there. Plus, he's definitely proven on his show "Anderson Cooper 360" that he has a lot of opinions. And despite earlier statements to the contrary, and the fact that he has plenty to do as it is, it sounds like he's actually open to the idea.

"Look, I'm very happy at CNN,"Cooper told Andy Cohen on Bravo's "Watch What Happens Live.""It would be a dream to work with Kelly, but nobody's offering anything, so..."

Andy Cohen

Andy Cohen is reportedly Kelly Ripa's other top pick to replace Strahan. Again, they're very close friends, and Cohen clearly stays up on the news for his late-night show "Watch What Happens Live."

The problem is he may not want to do a late-night show and then wake up to do an early daytime show, too. And he's very entrenched in Bravo as an executive producer on the "Real Housewives" franchise and future projects, such as the upcoming pop-culture history show "Then & Now with Andy Cohen."

D. L. Hughley

Comedian D. L. Hughley would be a hilarious addition to "Live." But he also has some pretty good hosting chops, having fronted shows for BET, CNN, and shows on both New York radio and satellite radio. Like Strahan, Hughley was also in the cohost rotation in 2012 after Regis Philbin retired.