President Donald Trump rallied in Bullhead City, Arizona, and Kalispell, Montana, on Wednesday, urging voters to back Republican candidates as the midterm election cycle entered its final weeks. Republicans have pulled back from some battleground House races, while Democrats are seeking money for candidates who looked like long shots earlier this year.
Campaign stops and competitive races
In Bullhead City, Trump campaigned for Rep. Andy Biggs, who is running for governor against incumbent Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs. Arizona also has several competitive House contests. Trump then traveled to Kalispell to support Republican congressional candidate Aaron Flint in Montana’s 1st District, where Flint faces Democrat Sam Forstag in a close race.
Montana’s Senate race features Trump-endorsed GOP nominee Kurt Alme. Democrats are divided over whether to back their party’s nominee, Alani Bankhead, or independent candidate Seth Bodnar. Trump’s Montana visit followed Tuesday’s Alaska rally for incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan, who faces Democrat Mary Peltola in a tight race; another candidate named Dan Sullivan is also in that contest. Recent campaign stops have taken Trump to Ohio, Texas and Nebraska.
At the Arizona rally, Trump repeated false claims about the 2022 election. He called it “rigged,” said voting machines had been broken and claimed without evidence that Republican Kari Lake had beaten Hobbs. Election officials said some machines in Maricopa County temporarily malfunctioned because they wouldn’t accept ballots, rather than misreading them. Officials fixed the issue on Election Day afternoon. Trump also repeated his false claim that the 2020 presidential election was rigged.
Remarks and appearances
Trump spoke at length about a 747 the Qatari government gave him to use as Air Force One. “When you’re given gifts, you take them, right?” he said. “When they give you a 747, you say two words: thank you.” Trump said Qatar gave him the plane because he was their “friend.” The aircraft had raised concerns about its security capabilities compared with the previous aircraft, and Trump said over the summer that it would be sent away for upgrades.
Boxer Floyd Mayweather joined Trump onstage in Arizona. Mayweather said, “America is the best country in the world,” and recalled representing the United States at the 1996 Olympic Games. Trump said he had made “so much money with this guy.” Boxer Mike Tyson appeared with Trump at a rally in Syracuse, New York, over the weekend.
Trump also remembered conservative activist Charlie Kirk on what would have been Kirk’s 33rd birthday. Kirk moved Turning Point U.S.A.’s headquarters to Arizona in 2018, where he lived with Erika Kirk and their two children before someone shot and killed him the previous year. Trump urged voters to turn out in Kirk’s honor and told Erika Kirk, “We love you.”
Trump criticized Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., whose Washington, D.C., home federal agents searched Monday. Agents seized her phone, and people familiar with the investigation said investigators sent roughly a dozen subpoenas in a probe into potential immigration-related crimes. Omar said the search was “an attempt to target political enemies and weaponize federal law enforcement.” Trump also accused her of financial and immigration fraud on Truth Social.
The Montana rally
In Kalispell, Trump urged people to vote Republican and warned that Democrats would take away gun rights. He said the Second Amendment “is under siege” but Republicans in Washington would keep it “totally protected.” The rally took place at Majestic Valley Arena, whose website lists its capacity at 7,000. The arena filled, security began turning people away, and attendees, including NBC News reporters, waited in traffic for hours to reach the parking lot. Trump made his first visit to Montana’s Flathead Valley; the last sitting president to visit the region was Gerald Ford in 1975.
- donald trump
- arizona
- montana
- andy biggs
- katie hobbs
- aaron flint
- floyd mayweather
- midterm elections