Donald Trump says he probably won’t run in 2028 if he loses

He added that “hopefully, we’re going to be very successful.”

US law bars presidents from serving more than two terms, and so he is not expected to run in 2028 if he wins, either.

In the past Trump has rarely acknowledged the possibility of losing the election, more often firing up supporters with speeches and social media posts pledging victory at the polls.

But this is the second time in four days he has mentioned a chance of defeat.

During an event held by the Israeli-American Council on Thursday, he brought up losing, and suggested that any such loss would partly be the fault of Jewish voters.

“Do they know what the hell is happening if I don’t win this election?” he said, according to various media reports. “And the Jewish people would have to do a lot with that if that happens because at 40% [support] that means 60% of the people are voting for the enemy.”

The comments were condemned by the Harris campaign and by the nonpartisan American Jewish Committee and Anti-Defamation League.

Trump’s acknowledgments of a possible loss may be driven by signs that Harris could win in November, although by many measures the race is still very close.

Her campaign raised more than $190m (£142m) in August, compared to $130m brought in by the Trump campaign and affiliated organisations.

In national polling averages tracked by the BBC she is ahead of Trump, and a poll released on Sunday by CBS shows she leads Trump 52% to 48% nationally.

In key US battleground states, Harris has a narrower lead of 51% to 49%, which is a slight improvement from the even 50% in a similar poll conducted last month by CBS, the BBC’s news partner.

Another poll released on Sunday by NBC shows Harris with a five percentage point lead over Trump across the US. It also found that 48% of registered voters see her positively compared to 32% in July – the largest jump since then-President George W Bush’s favourability surged after the 11 September 2001 attacks.

The BBC has contacted the Trump campaign for comment on the polling data. Trump has been largely dismissive of these polls and instead often points to other data suggesting he has a commanding lead.