In public, former president Donald Trump has repeatedly and perniciously insisted that he will only lose tomorrow’s election if the Democrats somehow steal it from him. Within his campaign, however, staffers quietly acknowledge that the Republican presidential candidate could lose without any jokes.

In an internal email obtained by AxiosTrump’s co-campaign manager Susie Wiles plans drawn up for the dismantling of the campaign apparatus after the elections. In the event of a Trump victory, some staff will transfer to Trump’s transition and inauguration teams, Wiles wrote. But those plans are couched in a lot of conditional language: “God willing,” “just in case President Trump and Senator (JD) Vance be elected,” “we must prevail.”

That kind of hedging would be standard for any other campaign on the eve of a toss-up election — but it’s not characteristic of Trump, who generally exudes confidence bordering on megalomania. Last weekend, the former president hyped a Breitbart interview with the right-wing pollster Mark Mitchellwhich predicted a landslide victory for Trump, contradicting virtually every other reputable poll showing the race to be one of the closest in the history of American politics.

Trump and his allies have also laid the groundwork for a second “Stop the Steal” movement, suggesting without evidence that election fraud and mismanagement are endemic across the country. “Do your part to ensure we win by more than the margin of fraud,” reads a website sponsored by the Republican National Committee.

Wiles’ email seemed to acknowledge that there is in fact a universe in which voters choose Trump’s opponent. Kamala Harris— and, perhaps even more striking, a universe in which Trump staff accepts that and goes home. (“Regardless of the outcome of the election,” she wrote, “November 30 will be your last day on the payroll.”) During a Saturday interview with ABC News, Trump appeared to grant that possibility after chief Washington correspondent Jonathan Karel asked him if he thought there was any way he could lose. ‘I think you can lose, you can lose. I mean, that happens, right?” Trump said. Despite direct requests to do so, Trump has not publicly committed to a peaceful transition.