Nomia Iqbal
Reporting from West Palm Beach, Florida

One consistency with Donald Trump is that he likes to make big announcements from luxury properties he owns.

In 2015, his escalator ride at Trump Tower in New York was one of the most consequential moments in political history when he announced he was running for the White House. He was dismissed as a joke by political experts and pollsters at the time.

Here we go again, seven years later, but we’re at his private club and residency in West Palm beach where he’s expected to make the same declaration. And this time, there’s no joking – the former president is a serious contender.

The lakefront retreat is anything but tranquil - it has continued to be Trump’s de facto seat of power both during and after his presidency. He often referred to Mar-a-Lago as the Winter White House while in office.

It’s also the scene of alleged crimes - only three months ago the FBI raided the property, leading to the Department of Justice accusing Donald Trump of unlawfully possessing top secret and highly classified material. He’s denied wrongdoing.

Mar-a-Lago is the castle and Florida is Trump’s kingdom. It was once described as the ‘Trumpiest’ place in America after he won the state by 3.4% in 2020. His 'America First' politics is credited for painting the once swing-state crimson-red.

Trump will likely remind his audience of that tonight – and he will also be hoping the man who could dethrone him, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, is listening.

Our focus here may be on Donald Trump tonight but, meanwhile, world leaders including President Joe Biden are holding an emergency summit in response to missiles landing in Poland - and therefore Nato territory.

You can follow the latest developments here.

Donald Trump won a surprise victory in the 2016 presidential election - partly because he pledged to shake things up.

Back in 2021 when Trump left office, we ran a six-minute montage of his time in the White House.

Have a watch below.

Sarah Smith
North America Editor at Mar-a-Lago

I’m with dozens of camera crews and reporters crammed at the back of a huge ballroom in Mar-a-Lago. We daren’t leave the platform in case we lose our spot, but it's hours before we expect Donald Trump to appear

All the big US TV networks are at the front with foreign broadcasters like the BBC squeezed up at the back. As far as I can see I’m the only broadcast journalist from the UK who has been allowed in.

Everyone is here because they think Trump is going to announce another run at the White House. No one knows for sure that is the case. Our press passes enigmatically call the event a “special announcement at the Mar-a-Lago club”.

The music has just started - Elton John’s Rocket Man is blaring out across the huge ballroom. Invited guests are starting to take their seats in the 400 or so golden chairs set out for them. About half the women are in bright red dresses with very high heeled shoes.

They are all gathering under huge crystal chandeliers. With its large mirrors and golden accents everywhere, the room looks like a designer in the 1980s was given the brief: “Versailles - with bells on”. And of course there are Make America Great Again banners all over the place.

Outside some supporters are waving huge flags declaring “Trump Won” and calling for him to run again. For some, the ornate grandeur Trump enjoys surrounding himself with is part of the appeal. And while there is no gold escalator as there was for his 2015 announcement - there is no shortage of gilt decor.

Anthony Zurcher
North America correspondent

Last Monday, Donald Trump told a crowd in Ohio that he would be making a “very big announcement” from Mar-a-Lago today. It was a not-so-veiled hint that he was poised to launch yet another bid for the White House.

At the time, it appeared as though Trump would be capitalising on Republican midterm electoral success the following day – including victories by candidates the former president helped boost over more established options.

It didn’t turn out that way. Instead of striking while the political iron was hot, Trump’s impending presidential announcement now is more akin to damage control – a way to stave off continued second-guessing from those in his own party about his political instincts and the direction he has taken the party since he wrested control of it back in 2016.

The media currently are rife with reports of conservative donors looking for 2024 options not named Trump. His long-time critics within the party have launched attacks with newfound energy. Even close allies, like Florida Republican Congressman Matt Gaetz, are floating excuses for why they may not be at Mar-a-Lago for his big night.

That’s assuming Trump makes a presidential announcement at all. He has been known to change course on a moment’s notice, and he could use the occasion to simply tease a White House campaign.

For the moment, however, Trump is back in the national spotlight – even if it’s not in the way he may have envisioned it at first.

Donald Trump has been hinting that he will enter the 2024 White House race for some time, even before he dropped the heavy hint last week.

Before that, at a rally in Texas in October, he told supporters he would "probably have to do it again".

The former president has a massive campaign war chest and remains popular with the Republican base.

But he has been blamed for the Republicans' disappointing performance in the midterm elections on 8 November.

His announcement - if we do get one - will come after those elections in which many of his endorsed candidates underperformed, throwing into question the continued viability of Trump's brand of US conservatism.

We're waiting to hear from former President Donald Trump.

He's been teasing another run for the White House in 2024 – and last week told supporters that he would make a "big announcement" tonight at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.

Stay with us for updates and analysis from his speech.