Story highlights Conservatives and Republicans who identify as part of the #NeverTrump movement are trying to figure out what to do

Some are mulling pushing for a third party bid, with Sen. Ben Sasse as one possible candidate

Washington (CNN) With Donald Trump now the presumptive Republican nominee, the various #NeverTrump forces are pondering everything Thursday from enlisting first-term Sen. Ben Sasse to avoiding the White House battle altogether.

Sasse, a Nebraska Republican, has emerged as a central figure in the movement. He wrote a Facebook post early Thursday arguing for an alternative candidate to Trump and Clinton, which had garnered more than 6,400 likes by late morning.

"Why shouldn't America draft an honest leader who will focus on 70% solutions for the next four years? You know ... an adult?" Sasse wrote.

Trump's effective securing of the nomination has scattered Republicans, with some including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and party Chairman Reince Priebus urging their colleagues to unite behind him. But the disparate anti-Trump forces remain split -- with some saying they will vote for Hillary Clinton and others urging an alternative to Trump and Clinton, even if it means losing the White House.

"At the very, very least we're all going to unite to help the down-ballot candidates who are going to have an extreme amount of trouble right now," said Deborah DeMoss Fonseca, spokeswoman for Conservatives Against Trump on Thursday. "I think there will be a lot of people who will sit out the presidential one and try to help whoever we can help, but I can tell you there is a growing number of people looking at getting someone else on the ballot."

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