Politics- Trump told supporters his 2024 announcement would be in a "very, very, very short period of time."
- While he has long hinted at a third presidential run, these comments have been his most explicit.
Former President Donald Trump gave his strongest hint yet that he plans to announce his plans to run for president in 2024 imminently.
"I'm not going to say it right now," Trump told the cheering crowd at a rally in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, on Saturday.
As his supporters chanted, "four more years," Trump responded, "Everybody, I promise you, in the very next, very, very, very short period of time, you're going to be so happy."
—Newsmax (@newsmax) November 6, 2022
Trump suggested that he was holding back from announcing because he didn't want to steal focus from Pennsylvania GOP candidates ahead of the imminent midterm elections.
"And one of the reasons I don't want to do that right now, because I'd like to do it, but you know what, I really mean this, I want to have the focus tonight be on Dr. Oz and on Doug Mastriano," he said.
However, the former president told rally attendees to expect an announcement "very, very soon."
"You're gonna be surprised at how soon, but first, we have to win a historic victory for Republicans in November," Trump said.
Axios reported on Friday that Trump's team is looking at November 14 as a possible date to formally announce his 2024 candidacy.
Some analysts have suggested that Trump will likely declare his candidacy after the midterms, seeking to capitalize on any Republican successes.
It is widely expected that Republicans will take back control of the House, while many Senate races will be very tight.
Trump encouraged the crowd to vote for Republicans in the upcoming ballots and predicted the GOP would take control of the House and the Senate.
"And in 2024, most importantly, we are going to take back our magnificent — oh it's so beautiful — White House. We're going to take it back. And you're going to be hearing about it very soon," he said.
Since leaving office, Trump has frequently hinted that he plans to run again.
His recent signaling has become more explicit, with him telling Iowa rally attendees this week that he will "very, very, very probably" run for president in 2024.
The former president is currently facing a slew of investigations and lawsuits, including his handling of government records after leaving office, his attempts to overturn the 2020 election, and his business dealings in New York.