Was Trump's 2016 win a fluke?

[dw93]

I thought so from November of 2016 until probably the end of 2018. By that point, he consolidated his support among the base, to where even many "Never Trump" Republicans of 2016 were rallied behind him, and any Republicans that won that year were of the MAGA persuasion. 2020 and beyond only furthered my belief that he was no fluke. 

[dw93]

Wut? How the hell could anyone believe Trump winning was a fluke? Republicans were favoured in 2016, parties very rarely win a third consecutive term.

If anything Clinton winning would have been more of a fluke benefiting from a historically unpopular challenger.

With that in mind I have to ask, and by asking I by no means am saying Trump's win was a fluke, but was Bush's win in 1988 a fluke then given the margin?

[dw93]

I don't know, tbh.

I do believe that almost any other Republican would have won the popular vote in addition to the electoral college.

But I'm not sure which of them could've won PA, MI, and WI. Maybe Kasich?

Kasich is the only one I can think of too. Out of all the candidates that had a realistic shot at the nomination, he and Rubio were the only ones I could see beating Hillary, though Rubio certainly wouldn't have won MI and I doubt he'd win both of PA and WI. Cruz or Jeb would've lost.