What Does the Future Hold for Trump in the U.S. Election?
What Does the Future Hold for Trump in the U.S. Election?
The U.S. presidential election is set for November this year, and former President Donald Trump, a popular candidate, finds himself in a challenging situation. Trump has been convicted in a criminal case, raising questions about his eligibility to run for president. What does this historic court ruling mean for his ongoing campaign? A Sky News report on Thursday delved into these questions.
**Can Trump Still Run for President?**
The first question is whether Trump can still run in the election. The answer is yes. Trump can still run for the U.S. presidency. The U.S. Constitution does not specify any disqualifications for convicted criminals among the three criteria for presidential eligibility. These criteria are:
1. The candidate must be born in the United States.
2. The candidate must be over 35 years old.
3. The candidate must have lived in the United States for at least 14 years.
Elizabeth Wydra, president of the Progressive Constitutional Accountability Center, told the LA Times, "Even if someone is in prison during the election, nothing can prevent them from running for or being elected as president." However, in some U.S. states, a person convicted and sentenced to one year or more in a criminal case is considered ineligible to run for office.
American pollster Doug Schoen points out that Trump was convicted for an incident that occurred eight years ago. The election is in November, and by then, the impact of this issue on American voters may not be as significant. Voters in November will be more concerned with issues like inflation, the situation at the U.S. southern border, competition with China and Russia, and spending on Israel and Ukraine.
**Impact on Trump’s Campaign**
However, Ariel Hill-Davis, co-founder of Republican Women for Progress, believes that this issue will impact Trump as a candidate and be detrimental to him. Republican pollster Whit Ayres mentioned that he suspected one-fourth of Republicans would avoid Trump. On the other hand, some analysts believe that the race between Trump and Biden will be close. Bill Galston, an analyst who has worked on Democratic presidential campaigns, suggests that the ruling might not significantly impact the presidential race. He compared it to lying about sex, stating, "I think most Americans believe that everyone lies about sex."
**Support from Donors**
Despite the ruling, Trump’s popularity has not waned. Many conservative donors view the case against Trump as politically motivated and have pledged their support. U.S. casino mogul Miriam Adelson and hotelier Robert Bigelow are among those standing by Trump. Thursday’s ruling has prompted some of Trump's long-time donors to contribute even more.
Bigelow, a staunch supporter, has already donated $9 million to a group backing Trump and plans to send another $5 million, describing the criminal proceedings against Trump as "disgraceful." Former Trump envoy to Jamaica, Don Tapia, plans to contribute $250,000 with a small family network and friends. Following the ruling, Tapia told Reuters that their goal is to give more than $1 million to the Trump-supporting group MAGA Inc. Silicon Valley investor Sean Maguire announced on social media platform X that he would donate $300,000 to support Trump.
