If the election turns out to be a photo finish, Republicans will have the luxury of ignoring the president’s most sinister allegations. They can point to narrow margins and recall procedures and say with some plausibility that the president is right to demand a full accounting of every vote cast.

If, on the other hand, the election is a blowout, and Trump is flinging wild accusations about wide-scale fraud and deep-state conspiracies to take him down, Republicans will be forced to choose a side. They will either stand with a battered soon-to-be-former president whose days in office are numbered whether he likes it or not, or they will stand with the democratic norms that have guided the nation for 244 years.

There is reason to be skeptical of some of the Republicans who have enabled and justified Trump’s assault on institutions these past five years. But keep in mind: They are on the ballot, too. If Mitch McConnell agrees that Biden’s victory is illegitimate, he is making the case that his own victory in Kentucky is illegitimate. That is not going to happen. Could you see a few of the president’s congressional sycophants go over the cliff with him? Sure. But the overwhelming majority of Republicans, confronted with the reality of a landslide defeat in the Electoral College, will realize that it’s time to see Trump out—and time to look ahead to 2024.