But former Rep. David Jolly (R-Fla.) isn’t buying it.
“A lot of people, even Republicans, even MAGA Republicans, might say, ‘Donald Trump loses and he goes away,’” Jolly told MSNBC’s Joy Reid on Monday, the eve of the presidential election.
“He doesn’t go away. He might go to prison but I promise you, he will consider running in 2028,” Jolly predicted.
If Trump “is not the King in ’28, he will be the kingmaker,” the former congressman added. “He will have an ‘Apprentice’ Republican primary down at Mar-a-Lago to control the ’28 process. He’s not going anywhere.”
Jolly’s prediction came during a discussion about Trump’s possible post-election efforts to overturn the result, should he lose to Democratic rival Kamala Harris.
“One of the first ways Donald Trump will try to say the election was stolen is there will very likely be an undervote in most states between the number of people who vote for Donald Trump and the next down-ballot state-wide Republican,” Jolly explained.
Republicans will claim “votes are stolen from Trump” but they just “don’t realize people don’t like Donald Trump, that’s why they’re doing it,” said Jolly.
The certification of the election in 2025 is “ultimately” what Trump will be playing to, he added. “This is a race all the way to January for Donald Trump,” he warned.
Watch Jolly’s full analysis here: