Trump launches nationwide campaign blitz, even visiting safe Republican strongholds

With a month to go before midterms, Trump plans nearly daily rallies across the country to boost Republican candidates and energize his base

Republicans weigh whether Trump helps or hurts — 'won't send him where it could backfire'

Trump urges supporters: 'Vote for me'

Vice President Vance also hitting the trail to rally Republican support

Supporters wait for President Donald Trump to speak at a rally for Texas Republican Senate candidate Ken Paxton at Peterbilt Motors Company in Denton, Texas, on Thursday (local time). [EPA]

President Donald Trump is launching a full-scale nationwide campaign tour ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections, with plans to travel across the country nearly every day for the remaining month — including visits to Republican strongholds he would not normally need to bother with. Observers say growing alarm within the party is driving the move, with Republicans fearing a crushing defeat in elections that already tend to favor the opposition, compounded by high inflation from the prolonged war with Iran.

Trump kicked off a 32-day national campaign swing on Thursday (local time), visiting Texas and neighboring Oklahoma to stump for Republican candidates ahead of the midterms.

He is also scheduled to visit Ohio and Alabama this week and will travel to Nebraska on Monday. The plan calls for him to campaign in competitive races nearly every day over the 32-day stretch.

What stands out about the itinerary is that it includes traditional Republican strongholds and reliably red states — places where GOP candidates once won comfortably without presidential help. Those areas have since become battlegrounds, forcing Trump to shore up wavering supporters and consolidate the conservative base even in territory the party long took for granted.

"Visiting Alabama and Oklahoma is definitely a bit unusual," a Republican official told The Hill, a congressional news outlet.

Alabama and Oklahoma are among the most reliably Republican states in presidential elections. Trump won both by margins of more than 30 percentage points in the 2024 presidential election.

Texas, once a bedrock of Republican support, is now on a knife's edge. Ken Paxton, the Texas attorney general whom Trump backed over the incumbent Republican senator, is locked in an extremely tight race against the Democratic candidate.

Ohio is also a competitive race where Democrats have a real shot at flipping a Senate seat — an outcome that could prove decisive in determining whether Republicans hold their Senate majority.

President Donald Trump speaks to reporters on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, D.C., before boarding Marine One on Thursday (local time). [AFP]

Trump has also pledged to visit all 35 competitive districts on his tour.

The question is whether his presence actually helps Republican candidates. Trump has been appealing to his base with a message along the lines of: even if you're disappointed in the Republican Party, come out and vote for me. He has also deflected blame onto the party itself, saying, "Nobody else is stepping up, so I will. We've done an extremely good job running the country — we've just done an extremely poor job of getting the word out."

Speaking to reporters as he departed for Texas on Thursday, Trump said, "I'd give us an A-plus on everything — running the government, the economy, all of it. We need to win this election."

Asked why he was visiting Oklahoma, Trump said, "Same reason as Alabama. I need to thank the states that support us 1,000 percent."

Within the Republican Party, however, there are concerns that putting Trump front and center could actually cost candidates votes — particularly in competitive districts where local resentment over inflation tied to the Iran war and opposition to data center construction are live issues. The Associated Press reported that Republicans plan not to send Trump to areas where his presence could backfire on their candidates.

Trump held the party's first-ever midterm convention in Dallas last month in an attempt to energize his base, but it failed to generate much enthusiasm. The effort was further undermined when private complaints from Paxton — who said the convention had actually hurt him — became public, laying bare the unease some Republicans feel about Trump's involvement.

Vice President JD Vance is also hitting the trail, visiting Florida on Thursday and planning to travel to various parts of the country before the midterms to promote the Trump administration's record and rally Republican support.

The midterm results carry significant stakes for Vance as well, given his own presidential ambitions. The elections amount to a midterm report card on the Trump administration, and a poor showing could set back his path to the White House in 2028.

With a month to go, most forecasts favor Democrats to take the House. The Senate remains a toss-up, with Republicans holding a slim edge — but if Democrats sweep both chambers, Trump could face an early lame-duck crisis.

yckim6452@heraldcorp.com