Trump was invincible electorally. Covid began as the method to destroy Trump’s roaring economy that was certainly going to get him reelected. As we all know, Covid was used as a political weapon. It was Katrina all over again. Anything Trump said was denied and ridiculed - HQC, Ivermectin, anything. Democrats, their corrupt MSM allies, and the tech lords then cranked up the fear factor, shut dow opposing voices as conspiracy, and then used Covid as the excuse to get mail-in ballot for the steal.
Which means, (considering how the MSM lies to us all the time) they were incredibly effective.