WASHINGTON — The White House suggests it won’t be a defeat if President Donald Trump’s candidate ends up losing Alabama’s Senate GOP runoff.

Legislative director Marc Short says Trump still supports Luther Strange, the establishment-backed candidate appointed to the seat that belonged to Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Strange is in a tight race against former Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore. The vote is Tuesday.

Short tells NBC’s “Meet the Press” that Trump believes Strange will win, but “if he loses, I think the reality is that the Republicans will still hold that seat.”

Trump rallied for Strange in Alabama on Friday, but the president acknowledged he may have made a mistake in endorsing Strange. Trump says Moore will have a harder time winning the general election.