Former President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he would continue his third presidential campaign even if he was convicted.
“Absolutely, I can’t even think about leaving,” Trump told reporters before a speech at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference.
Trump is under scrutiny by prosecutors probing his handling of classified documents, among other issues, over his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
Trump delivered the convention keynote speech on Saturday night, telling a cheering crowd of supporters that he was engaged in his “last fight” as he seeks to return to the White House.
“We are going to finish what we started,” he said. “We are going to accomplish the mission. We are going to see this fight through to the final victory.”
While CPAC was once a must for Republican presidential candidates, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, seen as the top potential Trump challenger, and other leading potential contenders have skipped this year’s gathering amid scandal and the group has become increasingly aligned with Trump.
The former president’s enduring popularity with this segment of voters was on display throughout the convention this week. Some attendees wore Trump-themed outfits with “MAGA” hats and sequined jackets. The potential and declared candidates, not named Trump, received only lukewarm applause.
And the annual CPAC Straw Poll, an unscientific poll of attendees, found Trump the top choice as the party’s nominee with 62% support, trailed by DeSantis at 20% and businessman Perry Johnson, who made his long-shot bid at the convention. announced, with 5%.
Nearly all – 95% of respondents – said they approved of Trump’s performance as president.
“This is an audience that supports President Trump,” Rep. said Alice Stefanik, R.N.Y., the No. 3 House Republican who endorsed Trump just days before he officially launched his 2024 campaign.
Stefanik, the only member of the House leadership who attended the conference, told The Associated Press that Trump remained the party’s leader.
“President Trump is in a very strong position and I think he will be the Republican nominee,” she said.
