Donald Trump has officially launched a third bid for the US presidency after several hints, amid
legal probes and blame for the Republican Party’s underwhelming midterm election results.
He made the announcement from his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida and said: “America’s
comeback starts right now.”
Mr. Trump said that “everybody was doing great” after his four years in office, “the world was at
peace” and that he “kept his promises”.
“Two years ago we were a great nation. And soon we will be a great nation again,” the former
US president added.
“The decline of America is being forced upon us by Biden and the radical left… this is not a
decline we must accept.”
He delivered the address to an audience of several hundred supporters, club members and
gathered press in a ballroom at his club in Florida – flanked by American flags and banners that
read: “Make America Great Again!”.
Ahead of his speech, Mr Trump’s aides filed paperwork for his 2024 presidential bid.
His much-anticipated declaration to stand comes as Republicans are still reeling from voters’
rejection of several of their candidates in the US midterm elections – many of them personally
chosen and endorsed by Mr Trump.
He had hoped to use his party’s expected gains as a springboard to his party’s nomination.
Instead, he now finds himself being blamed for backing a series of losing candidates after
disappointing results in which Democrats retained control of the Senate.
