Life is full of surprises. Not that many days ago most American voters were feeling quite discouraged as they faced the prospect of choosing between two elderly men for our nation’s highest office.

For many, the prospect of Donald Trump returning to office seemed horrifying yet likely. Though President Joe Biden’s legislative record put his predecessor’s to shame, issues with the economy (particularly inflation) combined with his failing health made his reelection seem at the very least uncertain. The Democratic Party made the difficult decision, through private and finally public pressure, to move President Biden aside.

Almost overnight, the contest has been transformed. All evidence points toward a tightening race, with Kamala Harris and her VP pick Tim Walz moving ahead in almost every poll.

Meanwhile, the Republican Party is left with what can only be described as a deeply flawed candidate. Trump, not much younger than our current president, regularly displays episodes of the same diminished mental capacity that made Biden unacceptable to voters and ultimately his party.

Though the former president comes across as louder and more energetic than Biden, he is also given to making wild assertions that are easily disproved, impossible to verify, or just so bizarre that he seems to have lost touch with reality. He seems unable or unwilling to articulate in a clear way any policy position or plan.

Unless one relies entirely on Fox News and other right-wing news media outlets, it is clear that the Republican Party is in trouble. Trump could easily lose and take the House and Senate with him. Though able to command an unnaturally devoted core of supplicants (note the strange fanatical worship of Trump at his rallies), most Republicans hold their noses and endure the 45th president. The long list of former Cabinet members and staff from his previous term in office that do not endorse him is unprecedented. It seems that those that know him the best like him the least.

The sensible thing to do would be to have Trump step aside to allow a candidate with broader appeal take his place. However, the very same character traits that make Trump repugnant to so many make replacing him impossible. None dare raise the possibility.

He perpetually forecasts doom for all if he is not elected. This is just another example of projection. Biden ultimately will be remembered for showing devotion to the country. An unelected Trump faces his golden years punctuated by endless court dates and the possibility of incarceration.

Edward M. Dowd lives in Greenfield.