--- title: Evan McMullin Says Donald Trump Will Lose 2016 Election description: "It's so likely that Donald Trump will lose, my entrance into the race doesn't affect that" canonical: https://time.com/4451636/evan-mcmullin-donald-trump-lose-election/ author: Mahita Gajanan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-08-14T15:06:08.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-22T23:58:14.708Z article:section: Politics og:title: Evan McMullin Says Donald Trump Will Lose 2016 Election og:description: "It's so likely that Donald Trump will lose, my entrance into the race doesn't affect that" og:url: https://time.com/4451636/evan-mcmullin-donald-trump-lose-election/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt926d41ca5f52eb30/6988a24dcd1bba11c9701f60/evan-mcmullin1.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Former CIA Agent Evan McMullin Launches Presidential Campaign In Salt Lake City og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Evan McMullin Says Donald Trump Will Lose 2016 Election twitter:description: "It's so likely that Donald Trump will lose, my entrance into the race doesn't affect that" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt926d41ca5f52eb30/6988a24dcd1bba11c9701f60/evan-mcmullin1.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Evan McMullin Says Donald Trump Will Lose 2016 Election by [Mahita Gajanan](https://time.com/author/mahita-gajanan/) ## Mahita Gajanan Gajanan is an editor at TIME. Aug 14, 2016 3:06 PM UTC  Former CIA agent Evan McMullin announces his presidential campaign as an Independent candidate in Salt Lake City on Aug. 10, 2016. Former CIA agent Evan McMullin announces his presidential campaign as an Independent candidate in Salt Lake City on Aug. 10, 2016.George Frey—Getty Images by [Mahita Gajanan](https://time.com/author/mahita-gajanan/) ## Mahita Gajanan Gajanan is an editor at TIME. Aug 14, 2016 3:06 PM UTC Evan McMullin, the former Republican policy guru who [launched an independent bid for presidency](http://time.com/4443725/evan-mcmullin-campaign-launch/), said his campaign won’t hurt Donald Trump’s chances because the Republican nominee is going to lose. “It’s so likely that Donald Trump will lose, my entrance into the race doesn’t affect that,” McMullin said during an appearance on [ABC’s _This Week_](https://twitter.com/ThisWeekABC/status/764817885256572930), noting Trump’s [recent campaign missteps](http://time.com/4451045/donald-trump-blame-game/). Calling Trump a “not credible candidate,” McMullin pointed to [low poll numbers](http://time.com/4450362/hillary-clinton-donald-trump-poll-swing-states/) and the Trump’s inability to “control what he says” to illustrate that Trump will lose whether McMullin entered the race or not. “He’s never had to control what he says … it’s unrealistic to expect him to do that now,” McMullin said. McMullin, who formerly served as a CIA operative and Republican House chief policy director, said his candidacy provides a change many citizens want, saying “82% of Americans think we’re on the wrong track.” “I am the only candidate in this race now that has any firsthand experience fighting terrorism,” he said. McMullin’s comments echoed his words when he announced his candidacy last week. [In a letter on his campaign website](https://www.evanmcmullin.com/blog), the candidate said he believed Americans need an alternative to Clinton and Trump. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4451636/evan-mcmullin-donald-trump-lose-election/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4451636/evan-mcmullin-donald-trump-lose-election/"},"headline":"Evan McMullin Says Donald Trump Will Lose 2016 Election","datePublished":"2016-08-14T15:06:08.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T23:58:14.708Z","description":"'It's so likely that Donald Trump will lose, my entrance into the race doesn't affect that'","url":"https://time.com/4451636/evan-mcmullin-donald-trump-lose-election/","keywords":["2016 Election topic","Donald Trump"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt926d41ca5f52eb30/6988a24dcd1bba11c9701f60/evan-mcmullin1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Mahita Gajanan","jobTitle":"Gajanan is an editor at TIME.","url":"https://time.com/author/mahita-gajanan/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt926d41ca5f52eb30/6988a24dcd1bba11c9701f60/evan-mcmullin1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Former CIA Agent Evan McMullin Launches Presidential Campaign In Salt Lake City","caption":"SALT LAKE CITY, UT - AUGUST 10: Former CIA agent Evan McMullin announces his presidential campaign as an Independent candidate on August 10, 2016 in Salt Lake City, Utah. 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