Assassination attempt likely to make Trump voters even more energized: experts

15 July 2024

After surviving an attempted assassination during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on Saturday afternoon, July 13, presumptive 2024 GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump is expected to make his acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee during the last night of the event.

Reporting for the Richmond Times-Dispatch, journalist Andrew Cain emphasizes that the attack is likely to affect the presidential race in two ways: Trump's supporters will be even more energetic, and it makes President Joe Biden less likely to drop out of the race.

Cain reports, "Both Trump and Biden have taken the right tone in urging national unity since the attempted assassination of Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania, said Larry Sabato, head of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia. A key question less than four months from Election Day is whether they will maintain that posture."

Political analyst Bob Holsworth, a former Virginia Commonwealth University dean at, told the Times-Dispatch that the former president's defiant tone after being shot in Butler is likely to "increase the attractiveness and appeal of Trump to his base."

Holsworth added that Biden's response to the attack — "acting presidential and trying to shape the narrative" might "short-circuit" Democratic calls for him to leave the race for "a few days, at least."

But Holsworth also told the Times-Dispatch, "I don't think necessarily it enhances his chances against Donald Trump."

John McGlennon, who teaches political science at the College of William & Mary in Virginia, told the Times-Dispatch, "As far as the impact on voters, it will take a while to understand the full implications of this act, but I do not think it will fundamentally alter the voters' views in this election."

Read the full Richmond Times-Telegraph report at this link (subscription required).

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