Trump named 2024 Time Person of the Year after winning presidency, surviving assassination attempts

President-elect Donald Trump was named Time's Person of the Year on Thursday, in recognition of his stunning political comeback and a historic year when he weathered assassination attempts and felony convictions.

"For marshaling a comeback of historic proportions, for driving a once-in-a-generation political realignment, for reshaping the American presidency and altering America's role in the world, Donald Trump is Time's 2024 Person of the Year," the magazine wrote.

It was widely expected Time would pick Trump; the magazine has bestowed the honor on the winner of that year's presidential election in every race since George W. Bush in 2000. Trump was also named Person of the Year in 2016 when he first won the White House. To mark the occasion, he will ring the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday morning.

"Since he began running for President in 2015, perhaps no single individual has played a larger role in changing the course of politics and history than Trump," Time wrote. "Trump is once again at the center of the world, and in as strong a position as he has ever been."

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Trump became just the second U.S. president after Grover Cleveland to win non-consecutive terms after he defeated Vice President Kamala Harris in November. After easily clinching the Republican nomination, Trump expected a rematch with President Biden, but Biden was forced to drop out under intense pressure from Democrats after a disastrous debate performance in June.

Harris quickly took his place atop the Democratic ticket in July, setting up a furious campaign fight to the finish. In a race that pollsters kept calling one of the closest ever, Trump won a decisive victory in the Electoral College, capturing all seven major battleground states. 

Making the win sweeter for him, he won the popular vote as well, leaving Democrats dazed and facing a daunting 2025 where Republicans will control the White House and both chambers of Congress. Trump made significant gains in blue states, in addition to making in-roads with Latino and Black voters.

But on July 13 this year, the 45th and future 47th president came just centimeters from dying. A would-be assassin fired shots at Trump as he held a rally in Butler, Pa, wounding him in the ear and hitting three others, one fatally. One bullet clipped Trump's ear, and as Secret Service sought to hurry the bleeding candidate from the stage, he held his fist in the air and yelled "Fight!" at roaring supporters.

The image of Trump with blood streaked across his face quickly became one of the most memorable political photos in American history. That same week, he accepted the Republican nomination and paid tribute to Corey Comperatore, a fireman who was killed by the shooter at the Butler rally.

Another assassination attempt in Florida, where no shots were fired at Trump after agents spotted a man with an AK-47 close to where he was playing golf, was foiled in September.

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"Many people have told me that God spared my life for a reason, and that reason was to save our country and to restore America to greatness," Trump said in his victory speech. "And now we are going to fulfill that mission together."

Trump also became the first former president to ever be convicted of a crime in May. He was found guilty in New York on 34 counts of falsifying business documents related to covering up a hush money payment to Stormy Daniels. His sentencing has since been repeatedly delayed and Trump has sought to have the case thrown out.

Other criminal cases against him in Georgia and on the federal level have either been dismissed or are in limbo as he returns to the White House.

Now in the midst of his transition and political fighting over his Cabinet picks, Trump is returning to the White House as perhaps the most transformative American political figure of the century, realigning the political map and busting Washington norms. 

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After a first term marked by fierce political fights, investigations and turmoil, how he will govern and whether he can make good on his promises to combat inflation, curb illegal immigration, throttle the permanent "deep state" in Washington and bring peace to a troubled world remains to be seen.

The other Time finalists this year included Harris, billionaire Elon Musk – who was named Person of the Year in 2021 – podcasting giant Joe Rogan, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Last year's Person of the Year was pop star Taylor Swift, who just concluded her record-breaking "Eras" concert tour.