Republicans predict Trump shooting ‘just won him the election’ as betting markets show big swing to former president

Donald Trump was already ahead in the polls, but some Republicans and demoralized Democrats now believe he is unstoppable after surviving an assassination attempt.

Commentators around the world described the photo of a bloodied former president raising his fist in the air as “iconic.”

And the episode is already being used in fundraising campaigns.

“President Trump is surviving this attack — he just won the election,” Rep. Derrick Van Orden of Wisconsin told Politico in a brief interview.

Minutes after the shooting, a Democratic strategist sent a private message saying, “Trump just secured his re-election.”

There are still four months to go until Election Day.

But the shooting allows Trump to portray himself as a strong leader, while doubts remain about Biden and his ability to do the job.

Biden’s campaign will also have to recalibrate its strategy after criticism that it presented the election as a choice between democracy and authoritarianism, creating an atmosphere that may have encouraged the shooter to target the former president.

The betting markets showed a shift toward Trump immediately after the attack.

And veteran Republican pollster Frank Luntz wrote on X that the shooting would help rally Republican voters in November.

“Just as the George Floyd event had a lasting impact on tens of millions of Americans, the death of Donald Trump will have profound consequences in ways the shooter never intended,” he said, referring to a Black man killed by police officers in 2020, sparking nationwide protests.

Republican Rep. Tim Burchett of Tennessee told DailyMail.com it would motivate the base, but the election was far from over.

“Absolutely not. We cannot be complacent,” he said.

“We must strive for victories in the White House, the House of Representatives and the Senate.”

“President Trump is surviving this attack — he just won the election,” Rep. Derrick Van Orden of Wisconsin told POLITICO in a brief interview

President Joe Biden has had a rough time since a disastrous debate against Trump in Atlanta last month. The latest DailyMail.com/JL Partners poll put him six points behind Trump

Still, betting markets showed a seven-point shift toward Trump over the past day, according to aggregator electionodds.com

And Nick Ferres, Chief Investment Officer at Vantage Point Asset Management, cited the huge support for Ronald Reagan when he was shot in the 1980s. He told Reuters: “The election is probably going to be a landslide victory.”

James Johnson, co-founder of JL Partners and pollster for DailyMail.com, said there was no doubt that Trump had highlighted one of his key advantages over Biden: that voters see him as “strong.”

“But a presidential race isn’t over until it’s over. We’re not living in the world of the ’70s or ’80s anymore, when it was possible to win landslide victories in the Electoral College,” he said.

‘America is polarized and the fight will be exciting no matter which way it goes.

‘A lot can change between now and November, as the future of the White House rests in the hands of a small number of voters in a small number of swing states.

Trump’s campaign has already used images of his clenched fist salute in fundraising emails.

“I am Donald J. Trump and I will never give up,” he said in one of those letters. “I will always love you for supporting me.”