Whether he was serious or not, Donald Trump said in September that he would not be a candidate for the 2028 presidential election.
In the event of a defeat for Donald Trump, we can already envisage serious tremors within the Republican Party.
The political party is infiltrated by Trump, his family and his most loyal allies, but several former or current elected officials dream of suppressing the Trumpists.
A high number of defections
Already unique due to two assassination attempts against Donald Trump and the abandonment of Joe Biden, the 2024 electoral cycle is also surprising by the large number of Republicans, often former close friends of the Republican candidate, who say they do not want to vote for him or, worse, who confirm that they will vote for Kamala Harris.
This is an indicator that does not mislead. Exhausted by the phenomenal quantity of lies and absurdities, or even disgusted by the disinformation (recently linked to the hurricanes in Florida) that is now being set up as a platform, many of them wish for a return to a party of ideas .
Another indicator not to be disdained is the behavior of the Republican elected representatives of the House. Most of the time, the most intense rivalries are not with the Democratic minority, but rather between factions of the Republican family.
If these internal divisions are commonplace within the two major formations, they rarely prevent a majority from being functional. The Republicans are there.
Republican “civil war”
If some Republicans have decided to openly express their anger and disagreement, the others are closing ranks for the moment, swallowing their anger while hoping for a victory.
However, they are aware that it is Trump who inspires many voters who see him as a kind of messiah. If the 45e president loses and does not return in 2028, the fight to succeed him will be fierce. Trumpism without Trump is difficult to envisage.
None of the other Trumpist leaders can perform as well as Trump himself. If we were to lose voters by changing leaders, we can easily imagine that the more traditional Republicans will do everything in their power to take over the leadership of the party.
Can you imagine the “traitors” who voted for Harris coming home? Even Nikki Haley, who opposed Trump for a long time before rallying, would have to fight hard to convince the most extreme elements to trust her.
Rarely in its long history has the Republican Party been so divided and ready to implode. Donald Trump can still win on November 5, but a victory would only postpone a brutal clash between his successors.
