It's almost time to leave for Donald Trump -
Sipa USA / SIPA
While Donald Trump has still not openly recognized the victory of Joe Biden, he spoke on Wednesday of the possibility of being a candidate again in the presidential election of 2024.
“It has been a fantastic four years.
We are trying to do four more years.
Otherwise, I will see you in four years, ”he said Tuesday evening, during a Christmas party at the White House.
An announcement on Joe Biden's swearing-in day?
The event, attended by Republican Party officials, was not open to the press but a video of his speech circulated shortly after.
Almost a month after the November 3 election, Donald Trump still refuses to admit his defeat to Joe Biden.
Reclusive in the White House, he limits his public appearances as much as possible, contenting himself, by way of presidential communication, with angry tweets on supposed electoral fraud, which no concrete element accredits.
“At this stage, we have not seen fraud on a scale likely to change the outcome of the election,” Justice Minister Bill Barr said on Tuesday.
His words carry all the more weight as this 70-year-old ultra-conservative is part of the president's close guard.
In this strange climate where the next president is preparing his team and the current one relays, more and more alone, conspiracy theories, Washington speculates endlessly.
According to NBC, Donald Trump has discussed with relatives the possibility of announcing the launch of his campaign for 2024 on January 20, the day of the swearing-in of Joe Biden, which he would therefore not attend.
A solid base of supporters
The former businessman says he's a little superstitious.
In 2017, he had the file submitted for a new candidacy in 2020 as of January 20, the day he took up his post.
True to his sense of provocation, he could also take the opportunity to use a recipe that he particularly likes: counter-programming.
Several times during his tenure, he boycotted the White House Correspondents Association dinner and organized a campaign rally the same evening.
An announcement of candidacy for 2024 would, of course, allow him to stay at the center of the game in the short term. But the road will be strewn with pitfalls.
From January 20, he will become “ex-president” and the equation will change radically.
The fear he inspires among elected Republican officials and the media attention he enjoys (and craves) will diminish considerably.
All eyes will turn to his successor, of course, but also to the senators or governors, who, within their own party, are stamping their feet and dreaming of getting into the race.
As he reminds us with tweets, Donald Trump did not however suffer the rout in the polls that some predicted him and can claim a solid base of supporters.
A bet won by one man
The count continues, but one thing is certain: the turnout in the 2020 election was historic.
Joe Biden has garnered over 81 million votes, a record.
But Donald Trump has passed the 74 million vote mark, which is also a record, just behind that of his Democratic opponent.
The percentage analysis is however less flattering for Donald Trump, who tirelessly mocks the “losers”: he has now fallen below the 47% mark of the votes cast.
Will he ultimately be a candidate in four years?
Nothing is less sure.
The real estate mogul works, as he himself claims, on instinct.
Far from it, strategic planning over several years is not its strong point.
In theory, nothing prevents him from trying his luck again in 2024. The US Constitution prohibits taking more than two terms, but making two non-consecutive is a possibility.
Only one man succeeded in this bet: Grover Cleveland, at the end of the 19th century.
Elected in 1884, he was defeated in 1888, then elected again in 1892. He is, in the history books, both the 22nd and the 24th President of the United States.
Grover Cleveland was 56 at the start of his second term.
Donald Trump would have 78.
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Donald trump
United States
US presidential election
Joe biden