• Analysis
Trump Midterm Rallies: Kansas and Iowa Stops Reinstated for Weekend
Donald Trump reinstated two in-person Kansas and Iowa midterm rallies this weekend after the Republican National Committee said on Thursday, five days before election day, that he would skip them in favour of tele-rallies.
From cancellation to reinstatement
The president's weekend schedule flipped twice in the final stretch of the midterm elections. On Thursday, five days before election day, the Republican National Committee announced Trump would no longer host in-person rallies in Kansas and Iowa, saying it felt it was in a "strong position" in both states.
By Friday morning the plan had changed again. A source familiar with the matter said the two rallies were "back on", rearranged to accommodate the 19 tele-rallies Trump is also participating in.
Trump's explanation and the reporter clash
Trump gave his own account on Thursday. He told reporters he believed Republicans would have "a strong Tuesday night" and said he did not feel he had to travel to Kansas. "I'm not going to Kansas because [Republican senator Roger Marshall] is doing very well," Trump claimed.
When a Reuters reporter asked whether the change of plan was because he was sick of traveling, Trump responded: "Oh, you're sick to ask that question. You are sick."
He went on to accuse the reporter of being "way out of shape" and called him "disgusting".
The states on the map
The Saturday tele-rallies target 19 states, reaching both Senate battlegrounds and races further down the ballot.
- •Competitive Senate race states on the list include Alaska, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Nebraska, Ohio, Texas and South Carolina
- •States with competitive House or gubernatorial races include Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Louisiana, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania and Virginia
The races behind the cancelled stops remain tight. Polls show a slim margin between the Republican and Democratic Senate candidates in Kansas, a state that has not sent a Democrat to the US Senate in 96 years. In Iowa, Democrats hold a small edge over Republicans in both the gubernatorial and Senate races.
The backdrop
Democrats are hoping to capitalize on growing discontent with Trump, whose approval ratings are declining, to retake the US House of Representatives and the Senate. Voters are disgruntled with his handling of the cost of living, which his war on Iran has exacerbated. In a Guardian/Harris poll of roughly 2,000 adults, most respondents named the cost of living and government corruption as top election issues.
It remains unclear whether Trump anticipated rearranging the Kansas and Iowa rallies or whether they were unexpectedly readded to his schedule.
