Former President Donald Trump has not attended either of the two republican debates this year, yet he continues to rise in the polls for the Republican nomination. 

Trump was indicted in April of 2023 for attempting to interfere with election results. He was arrested and criminally processed in Fulton County Jail in Georgia. However, criminal charges did not stop republicans from believing he is the best candidate for the presidency. 

The beginning of 2023 saw an established control over the polls from Trump with 45.2% of votes, with Florida Governor Ron Desantis directly behind at 34.6% of the votes. Trump slowly increased in the polls while Desantis and other candidates fell lower. On August 19, 2023, Trump reached a total of 55.8%.

Both Trump’s arrest and the first Republican primary took place right after this spike. Trump was absent at the August 23 primary. His arrest took place the following day, and Trump polled at a four month low of 50.7%.

The second Republican primary took place on Sept. 27, and Trump was once again absent. His dominance in the polls was unaffected by his not showing up. The primary ended up hurting other candidates and causing Trump to gather a larger following.

Directly after paying bail and leaving prison, Trump immediately shot back up to over 55%. As of Oct. 16, Trump was at an astonishing 58.4%, with second place Desantis at 12.6%. 

Despite losing the 2020 election 306-232 to President Joe Biden and facing criminal charges while not in office, many citizens still feel Trump is the best candidate for president.

“It’s that typical thing you see with presidents,” said senior Katy Babcock. “When one party has the presidency, everyone sees what they are doing wrong and the other party usually wins the next election.” Presidents are heavily criticized throughout the entirety of their presidency.

“There is a lot of benefit to not being the incumbent president,” continued Babcock. “You aren’t in the spotlight as much as the current president, so people are only focused on Biden instead of Trump.”

Becoming the nominee for either political party is very challenging because a candidate has to be incredibly well rounded both visually and intellectually. Proving yourself to be the most well rounded candidate takes a lot of advertising and strong appeals to the public, to which Trump is not standing out particularly in the current race. 

Senior Ryan Zumdome adds on to why some people may think that Trump is the strongest republican candidate. “I think the fact that Trump has already been president gives him an advantage because he knows what he is getting himself into. He can use that in his campaign which can bring more supporters that I don’t necessarily think the other candidates can.”

Trump has faced many challenges since the beginning of his political career from the 2016 election, including being arrested and criminally prosecuted. These hurdles will not slow down former President Trump’s momentum for the 2024 nomination.