According to Ford school lecturer Rusty Hills, the Republican Party has a succession problem. This produces an opportunity for non-Trump Republicans to put forth a candidate that can transform the party. In an opinion for the Detroit Free Press, he makes his way-too-early picks for candidates he'd like to see run for the GOP nomination.
Two former governors top the list: Mitch Daniels and Chris Sununu. Daniels is from Indiana, and after two terms as governor, he served as Purdue University's president up until 2022. Sununu was a four-term governor in New Hampshire, with his most recent term wrapping up earlier this year. In both of them, Hills sees someone who can bring back the "practical, principled, problem-solving good governance that used to be the hallmark of the Grand Old Party."
Hills isn't convinced that either potential candidate could survive a primary, though. He theorizes that "in order to win, a non-Trump Republican will have to follow in Trump’s footsteps, and radically re-shape the composition of the party." Following in the footsteps of non-traditional Republicans Eisenhower, Reagan, and Trump could be a business magnate like Bill Ford or a sports icon like Nick Saban.
It's also possible a traditional GOP politician like Daniels or Sununu will get traction as an independent, Hills says. What's certain is that the field is far from set, and anything can happen in the next three years.
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