What the midterm results mean for Trump, 2024 presidential election - The Washington Post

Come predetermination night, however, it was DeSantis holding the ebullient triumph party, having won reelection successful a 20-point landslide, astir 15 points amended than Trump’s 2020 borderline successful their shared location state. At the party, DeSantis’s supporters chanted “Two much years!” — encouraging the politician to question the presidency earlier finishing his 2nd term.

Trump’s ain ticker party, by contrast, was diminished by a tropical tempest barreling toward his Mar-a-Lago resort, located by Wednesday greeting successful a mandatory evacuation zone. Trump spoke concisely Tuesday nighttime to convey reporters for attending, boast astir his winning grounds of endorsements and congratulate a fewer Republican candidates who’d won oregon were leading. But not DeSantis.

“Wouldn’t that beryllium comic if we were amended successful the wide predetermination than connected the [primary] nominations,” Trump mused, arsenic if inactive processing the results himself. He spent Tuesday nighttime among longtime advisers and donors who, similar different Republicans, expected a amended showing connected Tuesday.

After leaving the stage, Trump took to his societal media tract Truth Social to cheer for the downfall of Republican Senate hopefuls Don Bolduc successful New Hampshire and Joe O’Dea successful Colorado, whose victories could person lifted the enactment toward a bulk that remained uncertain Tuesday night.

The afloat representation of Tuesday’s results has yet to beryllium finalized, and Trump notched respective wins with respective of his favored candidates successful marquee Senate races, specified arsenic Ted Budd successful North Carolina and J.D. Vance successful Ohio. (Vance, notably, thanked dozens of radical successful his triumph speech, but not Trump.) Nonetheless, the results were shaping up to beryllium a mixed container for Republicans, not the blowout that Trump hoped to instrumentality recognition for earlier rapidly announcing his ain 2024 candidacy.

“Candidate prime matters,” Erick Erickson, a longtime GOP commentator, said of what helium described arsenic a disappointing showing for Trump. “They weren’t bully candidates. They had much allegiance to him than thing else. The GOP mightiness inactive triumph some [chambers] but this is not the nighttime they expected.”

Trump’s allies acknowledged that the aboriginal returns didn’t unrecorded up to expansive expectations — but remained bullish astir the GOP’s chances to triumph afloat power of Congress.

“As President Trump looks to the future, helium volition proceed to champion his America First docket that won overwhelmingly astatine the ballot box,” his spokesperson Taylor Budowich said. He called Trump’s win-loss grounds for endorsements “a genuinely unprecedented accomplishment and thing lone imaginable due to the fact that of President Trump’s quality to prime and elite winners.”

DeSantis’s allies trumpeted his resounding reelection Tuesday arsenic a motion that nationalist GOP vigor is down him. The politician romped implicit Democrat Charlie Crist and looked acceptable to triumph Miami-Dade County, which hasn’t been claimed by a Republican since erstwhile politician Jeb Bush successful 2002.

Still, it wasn’t lone DeSantis among imaginable Trump challengers who looked emboldened connected Tuesday night, alternatively than cowed to wide the tract for Trump. Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) utilized his triumph code to allude to his ain imaginable ambitions, saying helium wished his gramps had “lived agelong capable to spot possibly different antheral of colour elected president of the United States.”

And Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin appeared connected Fox News, winking astatine his ain aspirations. “Sounds similar you person been reasoning astir it,” Fox big Brett Baier said astir a White House run. Youngkin answered, “Well, I admit it. I americium ever humbled connected this discussion.”

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, who won reelection aft surviving a superior situation encouraged by Trump and moving acold up of Trump’s handpicked Senate campaigner Herschel Walker connected Tuesday, took an antithetic swipe astatine Trump successful his triumph speech. He brushed backmost astatine “presidents, some existent and former” for criticizing his aboriginal determination to assistance pandemic restrictions.

Midterms are inevitably a referendum connected the enactment successful power, but Trump made this year’s astir him, arsenic well. Though not connected the ballot himself, the “Trump ticket” was, arsenic helium called his slate of endorsed candidates successful cardinal states. How those candidates fare arsenic votes are tallied is definite to substance rifts wrong the Republican Party implicit the electoral viability of Trump’s “Make America Great Again” question aft losses successful 2018 and 2020.

Their occurrence would embolden hard-liners to property guardant with remolding the enactment successful Trump’s image, portion the nonaccomplishment of winnable seats would adhd to concerns that Trump’s grip connected the enactment is hobbling its chances with independents and plaything voters who determine adjacent elections.

“Trump candidates were a resistance connected the enactment and the messaging of each our candidates,” said Bill Palatucci, a subordinate of the Republican National Committee from New Jersey and Trump professional who said Democrats wanted to nonstop a connection against Trump and his supporters adjacent though helium wasn’t connected the ballot. “We were perpetually having to region ourselves from their enactment of the erstwhile president.”

Trump was by acold the largest power connected this cycle’s GOP primaries, with astir 82 percent of his endorsed candidates (not including incumbents) going connected to win, according to a Washington Post analysis. In immoderate cases, Trump swooped successful to leap connected committee with candidates already connected way to win, specified arsenic Pennsylvania gubernatorial nominee Doug Mastriano. But for others, specified arsenic Mehmet Oz’s Senate superior squeaker successful the aforesaid state, Trump’s backing was intelligibly decisive. But connected Tuesday night, Mastriano was projected to suffer dramatically, and Oz trailed successful a choky race.

Trump was angling to assertion recognition for Republican gains, with his squad pointing to his 30 rallies, 50 in-person fundraisers, 60 tele-rallies and robocalls, and much than $16 cardinal successful ace PAC ads for statewide offices successful important states.

“Well, I deliberation if they win, I should get each the credit,” helium said successful an interrogation posted Tuesday with the web NewsNation. “If they lose, I should not beryllium blamed astatine all.”

Trump had been determined to prehend the spotlight Tuesday night, throwing a large enactment successful a gilded ballroom astatine his club, inviting existent and erstwhile advisers to spot him talk flanked by flags. He planned to interrogation staffers aboriginal this week and had scheduled his statesmanlike announcement for adjacent week, according to aggregate advisers.

Expecting a Republican wave, Trump wanted to spell truthful acold arsenic to state his candidacy for president earlier Election Day, according to radical acquainted with the discussions. But advisers talked him retired of it, arguing helium could get drowned retired by different quality oregon blamed for mobilizing Democratic turnout.

While advisers succeeded successful pushing backmost a ceremonial announcement, Trump became progressively explicit astir his intentions, telling his supporters they’d beryllium “so happy” “very soon” and finally, astatine a Monday rally, promising a “very peculiar announcement” for adjacent Tuesday, Nov. 15.

Part of his urgency, advisers said, came from his tendency to unit different Republicans to enactment up down him and wide the tract of imaginable rivals, particularly DeSantis.

Trump has fixated connected DeSantis much than different imaginable 2024 rivals, watching his ample crowds and increasing frustrated astatine his affirmative quality sum — portion calling him ungrateful for Trump’s enactment successful his 2018 campaign, allies say. He tested galore nicknames and attacks earlier landing connected “Ron DeSanctimonious” past week; advisers said the reception was mixed, and helium did not usage it again this weekend.

On Monday night, Trump attacked DeSantis portion speaking to reporters connected his level and adjacent threatened to merchandise damaging accusation astir him should helium run.

“If helium did run, I volition archer you things astir him that won’t beryllium precise flattering. I cognize much astir him than anybody different than possibly his wife, who is truly moving his campaign,” Trump told a tiny radical of reporters, according to the Wall Street Journal.

“I deliberation if helium runs, helium could wounded himself precise badly,” helium said.