Even having lost the November elections, former President Donald Trump has often teased about running for office a second time in 2024. However, according to a political historian, it seems very unlikely for the former president to launch a second presidential bid.
Political historian Allan Lichtman spoke to Andre Oppenheimer of the Miami Herald, weighing in on Trump’s chances of securing the GOP nomination in a possible second run for office. Lichtman, who has correctly predicted who would win the presidential elections for the last three decades, said that it is very unlikely for Trump to be able to launch a second run.
Lichtman explained that Trump is facing several legal and financial challenges that would make it difficult for him to run for office again, whether as a candidate or as the Republican nominee.
Trump has “Got $400 million-plus in loans coming in due. His brand is failing. His businesses are failing. He’s got a huge IRS audit. He doesn’t hold office anymore. He’s lost his Twitter feed,” said Lichtman. The political historian went on to claim that Trump will only make it look like he is going to run for office again despite facing a decline in resources. The former president is currently facing around 29 civil and criminal lawsuits, according to the Washington Post.
When it came to both vice president Kamala Harris and president Joe Biden, Lichtman said that Harris would become the “obvious choice” among the Democratic party as its nominee. However, Lichtman noted that despite being 82 years old by 2024, Biden should not be ruled out in running for a second term in office.
Despite the diminishing resources to make another bid for the White House, Trump still holds considerable sway over the Republican Party that his endorsement would ensure a group of supporters for a candidate. Recently, Trump endorsed House Republican Jody Hice, who would be challenging Brad Raffensperger for the post of Georgia’s Secretary of State. Raffensperger drew the ire of the now-former president for refusing to overturn the state’s election results in his favor.
That was followed by the surfacing of recordings of Trump’s phone call to Raffensperger, telling him to “find” more votes to be able to overturn the results. Georgia went to Biden during the elections.