Donald Trump formally entered the 2024 US presidential race on Tuesday, making official what he’s been teasing for months just as many Republicans are preparing to move away from their longtime standard bearer.

Minutes before his appearance at an event announcing his candidacy, Trump’s campaign filed federal paperwork to declare that he’s running again, becoming the first major contender from either party to formally declare.

America’s comeback starts right now,” the 76-year-old former president told his supporters at his palatial Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida.

Trump’s paperwork with the Federal Election Commission was filed 23 minutes before the scheduled start of Trump’s announcement speech, designating his campaign committee for fundraising.With his announcement Trump is the first major contender from either party to formally declare.

Yet the timing could not be worse for Republicans. Candidates endorsed by Trump floundered in key races in last week’s mid-term elections, as voters rejected election-deniers and others with extreme positions on social issues like abortion rights and education.

That cost Republicans their chance to reclaim the US Senate and left them well short of the significant majority they had hoped to win in the House, though they were within one seat of gaining control on Monday night, nearly a week after the close of polls across the country.