Due to a section of the Republican National committee’s rules, candidates wishing to compete in several of their debates need to sign a loyalty pledge. The text of this pledge prevents any who sign from engaging in future third party runs.

In the first presidential debate, Donald Trump stood firm in stating that he was considering a third party run if he was not the Republican’s presidential nomination. Now, at least in writing, a Donald Trump third party campaign is not a possibility. While many think that Trump could still go back on his word, this does not seem likely at least at this juncture – some on the Republican side have threatened to sue if he reneges on his promise and runs as a third party.

What does this mean for the future of the race? For one, it means that Donald Trump believes now with some certainty that he will be the nominee (or at least on the ticket) for the Republican side. Whether that happens or not is yet to be seen, but at least in the world of Donald Trump it seems like a pretty sure shot.

For the republican candidates, Trump’s signature likely brought a sigh of relief. The likelihood of Donald Trump running as a third party and splitting conservative votes, which I and others have been dreading for the past weeks, is no longer a possibility. Even if he does run, his credibility would likely go further down as the one thing he officially promised as a declared politician would have been a lie.

However, if Trump does end up as the Republican nominee there could be many sighs for another reason. I for one do not think that Trump has the maturity or political experience to be the head of state – but some of that is a different story.

For now all that is there is left to do is watch the polls and future debates to see if Trump can continue to upkeep his hot streak in the Republican race.