With only days left until the ۲۰۲۶ midterm elections, United States President Donald Trump has announced he will scale back his packed rally schedule, cancelling scheduled appearances in Iowa and Kansas.
The Republican National Committee (RNC) confirmed the cancellations in a statement on Thursday, unveiling a slate of “tele-rallies” to replace the cancelled events.
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RNC Chairman Joe Gruters argued that the virtual appearances will be more efficient, reaching more voters than Trump otherwise could with on-the-ground stops.
“Voters across the country want to hear from President Trump before Election Day, and this ۷۲-hour sprint will be a huge boost in the closing days,” Gruters said.
The tele-rallies will be broadcast to nearly ۲۰ states, including battlegrounds like Michigan, Alaska, Texas and Iowa, where competitive races are unfolding for the US Senate.
The RNC statement added that further events may be announced in the coming days.
Trump’s rally on Friday in Daytona Beach, Florida – some ۳۲۰ kilometres (۲۰۰ miles) up the coast from his Mar-a-Lago resort – will proceed as planned.
Less than five days remain until the midterm elections on November ۳, which will decide the composition of Congress, as well as key state and local offices.
Whichever party controls Congress will shape Trump’s legislative agenda during the final two years of his second term.
Trump has also expressed concern that the Democratic Party might push to impeach him for a third time if it wins majorities in both the House of Representatives and the Senate.
Currently, the Republican Party holds narrow majorities in both chambers. In the Senate, the party holds ۵۳ seats out of ۱۰۰. In the House, it has ۲۱۸ seats, with all ۴۳۵ offices up for grabs this election cycle.
The Senate, meanwhile, will see only about a third of its offices on the midterm ballot. Unlike in the House, where terms only last two years, senators are elected to six-year time spans, and their elections are staggered across different election years, to allow for greater stability.
Political forecasters have predicted Democrats have an advantage this midterm election cycle, citing Trump’s slumping poll numbers and voter blowback over cost-of-living issues, foreign policy and other concerns.
Harvard University’s ElectIt election forecasting model, for instance, has estimated that Democrats have a ۹۴ percent chance of taking control of the House.
The race for the Senate, however, will be more difficult, with fewer seats available to win.
Trump has placed himself at the centre of the Republican strategy to defend the party’s congressional majorities. To motivate his base of support, he has repeatedly encouraged voters with the phrase, “Pretend I’m on the ballot.”
Midterm elections occur halfway through a president’s term, and they are often considered a reflection of a president’s popularity.
At ۸۰ years old, however, Trump will be the oldest president by the time his term concludes, and his health has been a concern.
Since starting his second term, the Republican leader has been photographed with bruising on his hands, sparking speculation about any undisclosed medical conditions he may have.
After concluding a rally in South Carolina on Thursday, reporters inquired about his health.
“Mr President, you’ve been doing a lot of travel. We’ve been doing a lot of travel with you. How are you feeling? How’s your health?” a reporter from the news agency Reuters asked on the tarmac.
Trump, at first, dodged the question, focusing instead on his optimism about the Republican Party’s prospects in the election.
“We’re going to have a strong Tuesday night,” Trump said.
But the reporter continued with his line of questioning: “So you’re not going to Kansas has nothing to do with you being sick of travelling?” That prompted an irate reply from Trump, who lashed out.
“Oh, you’re sick to ask that question. You are sick,” Trump said, as he proceeded to insult the reporter’s weight.
“You’ve been following me for two weeks. I feel perfect. You are disgusting. Put yourself in shape. You look like hell.”
During his remarks to the reporter, Trump also questioned the need to visit Salina, Kansas, as he had planned to do on Saturday. “I don’t feel I have to go to Kansas,” the president said.
Kansas, normally a Republican stronghold, has not elected a Democrat to the Senate since ۱۹۳۲.
But this election cycle, Republican Senator Roger Marshall is facing a tight race with Democrat Adam Hamilton, the pastor of a megachurch.
On Thursday, the news outlet CNN released a poll showing Hamilton up by four percentage points, leading with ۴۹ percent support to Marshall’s ۴۵ percent.
