2016: Romney runs as the Indy conservative candidate rather than McMullin

[Mr. Morden]

Given McMullin's surge in Utah, it certainly looks like there's space for the right #NeverTrump conservative alternative candidate to gain traction in at least certain Republican states.  But McMullin is a nobody.  What if Romney had run 3rd party instead, and had actually started early enough to get ballot access in most states.  How would he end up doing?  Would he actually end up polling well enough to get in one or more debates?  What states would he finish in the top two in?  And would there be a mass defection of many GOP elites from Trump to Romney once the Trump sexual assault allegations came out?

[‼realJohnEwards‼]

This is definitely entirely possible. Assuming the final result was something like 46-36-18, I could see this map happening:

[Vosem]

Trump wins a single-digit number of heavily white, culturally southern states. Romney wins a single-digit number of western states (maybe just those two). The two of them do similarly in the popular vote; can't say who would've done better there. Trump does better in the EV. Hillary is easily over 400.

[Maxwell]

Clinton - 48-49%
Trump - 32-35%
Romney - 14-17%

[Kingpoleon]

460: Hillary Clinton/Xavier Becerra - 45.1%
46: Donald Trump/Bobby Jindal - 27.1%
32: Mitt Romney/Benjamin Sasse - 23.0%
Others - 4.0%

[‼realJohnEwards‼]

Hillary Clinton/Tim Kaine-466
Donald J. Trump/Mike Pence-55
Mitt Romney/Ben Sasse-17

Trump wins NE-01? Lincoln? Ok then whatever you say...

[Del Tachi]

Trump wins a single-digit number of heavily white, culturally southern states. Romney wins a single-digit number of western states (maybe just those two). The two of them do similarly in the popular vote; can't say who would've done better there. Trump does better in the EV. Hillary is easily over 400.

These places don't exist.  West Virginia and Kentucky are not "culturally southern", and all of the "culturally southern" states are heavily African-American.