A professor of Political Science at the University of Windsor says she believes the attempted assassination of former president Donald Trump solidifies the way the rest of the election will go.
Lydia Miljan is reacting to the news of what happened on Saturday at a rally in Pennsylvania, and says this gives Trump a good edge moving forward in the polls.
Trump has stated that a bullet grazed his ear, but that he's fine following the assassination attempt. Officials said the shooter was a 20-year-old from Pennsylvania and was killed by Secret Service while in an elevated position near the venue.
Miljan says this changes the narrative and puts forward an image of Trump as strong, and someone who can withstand an assassination.
She adds that moving forward she imagines the security detail for Trump and current president Joe Biden will be very heavy.
She says while politics are different in Canada there is still a lesson to be learned from this.
"I would hope though that it would make Canadian law enforcement who cover the security detail with both the Prime Minister and Leader of the Opposition much more vigilant. Anything can happen in politics, and our leaders also go into crowds, they also have big rallies, and so you have to be very careful."
Miljan says this attack shows how strong Trump is.
"Even though his security detail was trying to whisk him away and cover him, he was very cognizant that he wanted to send a message to his supporters as well as to his critics, so he had his fist pumped, and he was yelling some words, I think it was 'fight'. So that I think is going to be his persona, and he's going to still have those outdoor rallies because it fits with the narrative that he is a strong, capable leader."
She says she's seen many posts online saying the election is over at this point.
"I just don't see how the Democrats can actually respond to this in a way that makes their candidate look as capable, as cognizant. We see the images of Joe Biden always looking very stunned, and especially when he's up against an opponent. I think the only thing that's going to probably, potentially, change is they'll change who is at the top of the ticket for the Democrats."
One rally attendee was killed and two more were critically injured in the attack.
President Biden spoke to the public following the incident, and said there's no place in America for this type of violence. The White House has stated that Biden spoke to Trump several hours after the shooting.
Many political leaders have spoken out about the assassination attempt, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau who says he was sickened when he heard the news.
Federal Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre says he condemns the attempted murder of former president Trump in the strongest of terms.