If he loses in November, Trump says he'll quit politics

The future of Donald Trump following a potential loss in the upcoming presidential election has been a topic of much speculation. However, the former president has recently provided an unexpected answer to this question.

During an interview with Sharyl Attkisson on her show Full Measure, Attkisson asked if Trump could see himself running again in 2028 if he loses against the Vice President in November, to which Trump replied that he didn’t see it happening. 

“No, I think that that will be, that will be it. I don’t see that at all,” Trump said in response to Attkisson’s question according to a quote published by NBC News. But he also noted that he doesn’t believe that he will lose the election in November. 

“I think that hopefully we’re going to be successful,” Trump added. However, recent polls seem to indicate that Trump is falling further and further behind Vice President Harris as she makes gains across the country and in several swing states. 

The latest polling from NBC News showed that Harris has seen double-digit gains in her popularity with just six weeks to go in the election. The poll found the Vice President has a 5-point lead over Trump nationally with 49% of the vote to Trump’s 44%. 

“While that result is within the margin of error, it’s a clear shift from July’s poll, when Trump was ahead by 2 points before President Joe Biden’s exit,” explained NBC News correspondent Mark Murray. Still, the increase is very impressive. 

“Harris’ favorability has jumped 16 points since July, the largest increase for any politician in NBC News polling since then-President George W. Bush’s standing surged after the 9/11 terrorist attacks,” Murray added. 

However, Trump still holds some advantages with voters who say the former president was the better candidate in 3 key areas. Trump had a 9-point lead on the economy, an 8-point lead when it came to dealing with the cost of living, and a major 21-point lead on the issue of border security. 

Trump was also found to be leading among men (52%-40%), white voters (52%-43%), and white voters without college degrees (61%-33%). However, the NBC News poll found that Harris had her own major strengths and voter advantages. 

Vice President Harris has also etched out an edge over Trump when it came to being seen as the more competent and effective leader as well as the candidate who has the mental and physical health to be President of the United States. 

Harris had a whopping 28-point lead over Trump when it came to who would protect immigrant rights, a large 21-point lead on abortion, and even a 20-point lead when it came to having the mental and physical health to be president. 

One of the most important metrics where Harris leads Trump is in having the right temperament to be the President of the United States. Harris leads by 16 points, which Murray noted was a change of 9 points since pre-debate polling. 

Harris was also found to be leading Trump among “among Black voters (85%-7%), voters ages 18-34 (57%-34%), women (58%-37%), white voters with college degrees (59%-38%) and independents (43%-35%),” according to Murray. 

“Seventy-one percent of all voters say their minds are made up, while 11% say they might change their vote — a shift from April, when 26% said they could still change their mind,” Murray noted—a fact that may not bode well for the former president. 

Whether or not Trump will lose the election in November still isn’t guaranteed. Jeff Horwitt of Hart Research Associates told NBC News that all the movement toward Harris only “ returns the race to where it was in 2020 at the end of the campaign: a very close election.”

Anything can happen in U.S. politics. But Trump's decision to say he wouldn’t run again in 2028 makes a lot of sense considering he will be 81 years old in November 2028. Yet, when it comes to Trump, you can never assume he’ll stick to what he’s said in the past. 

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