Republicans redrew Alabama’s congressional lines to help the party gain a House seat, moving Rep. Shomari Figures’ district away from Mobile as President Trump prepares to campaign in the state. The five-state tour runs through Republican territory, where party leaders want to reproduce their 2024 presidential-year turnout. Yet some Republicans question why Trump is campaigning in states regarded as safely Republican.
Power on the Map
Figures faces a House race in a district based in Alabama’s southeastern quadrant starting with this year’s elections. The Republican nominee, state Rep. Rhett Marques, is slated to speak at Trump’s Friday rally at the University of South Alabama in Mobile. The event technically falls in the 1st Congressional District; House Republicans are targeting the 2nd. Figures could have a slim chance if a major Democratic wave emerges, though the race isn’t expected to determine control of the House.
Trump’s itinerary includes Texas, Oklahoma, Alabama, Ohio and Nebraska. He planned to visit Texas and Oklahoma on Thursday, Alabama on Friday, and Nebraska on Monday. Reports differed on the timing of some stops. Democrats are seeking to expand the midterm map, while Republicans aim to turn out voters in traditionally friendly territory.
In Texas, Trump was scheduled to visit Peterbilt Motors Company’s manufacturing facility in Denton, tout his economic record and what he calls the resurgence of American manufacturing, then travel to Durant, Oklahoma, for remarks and a rally urging support for Republicans. Texas has a competitive Senate race between Democratic state Rep. James Talarico and Texas state Attorney General Ken Paxton (R); polls have shown Talarico ahead. Trump’s super PAC has spent millions in recent weeks supporting Paxton. Democrats are also pursuing House gains in Texas despite a Republican redistricting effort, seeing opportunities as Hispanic voters move away from the GOP.
Campaigns, Ballots and Bills
The nonpartisan Cook Political Report rates Oklahoma’s five House races “solid Republican”; none is expected to be competitive. Trump is expected to appear with his endorsed gubernatorial pick, Mike Mazzei, who faces Democratic nominee Cyndi Munson. Cook Political Report rates that race “solid Republican,” though a Democratic operative said Democrats had seen polling showing it tied. Mazzei won a Republican primary runoff by less than a point in August; Munson won the Democratic primary with more than 74 percent of the vote in June.
“President Trump has a history of backing winners, and we’re winning,” said Mazzei campaign spokesman Jahan Wilcox. He said Mazzei was fighting to “eliminate the state income tax, abolish property taxes for seniors and veterans, and make Oklahoma more affordable for every family.” An unnamed GOP strategist called Mazzei “the worst possible candidate out of the field of Republicans in Oklahoma” and said Trump was going there “to try to save his brand” because the race was “tighter than it should be.” The Democratic Governors Association said Republicans were “in full-on panic mode.”
In the Senate, Democrats blocked the Stop Insider Trading Act, sponsored by Sen. Pete Ricketts and intended to restrict members of Congress from buying new stocks in publicly traded companies. The measure received 53 votes to 47, below the 60-vote threshold. Critics described it as Ricketts’ effort to defend himself and fault Democrats for blocking it; Independent Dan Osborn has accused Ricketts of profiting from his stock portfolio.
The Senate also rejected the Ratepayer Protection Act, backed by Sen. Jon Husted, 57-43, with four Democrats joining Republicans. The proposal would require utility regulators to consider a federal standard holding large companies responsible for new energy infrastructure costs for data centers, rather than passing those costs to consumers. Democrats said both bills didn’t go far enough. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said the Republican bill was “a permission slip for corruption, not a stock-trading ban.”
The Party’s Priorities
The Senate formally adjourned late Wednesday after its final votes before the November midterms. It left a farm bill, FISA reauthorization, the annual defense authorization bill, 12 regular appropriations bills, a permitting reform bill and an emergency supplemental defense spending package for the lame-duck Congress. Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) deferred those items until after Election Day. Senators will have four full weeks after returning in November to pass them.
Republican reactions to Trump’s tour were mixed. “I think there are red flashing lights everywhere,” said an unnamed Republican strategist. Scott Tranter, co-founder and director of data science at Decision Desk HQ, said, “Campaigns and presidents don’t spend time where they’re not needed, so that is a data point.” Republican donor Dan Eberhart said, “Nobody can motivate the base like Trump,” but added that he’d rather see Trump in more competitive Senate races.
Asked whether the tour signaled trouble for Republicans, Trump didn’t answer directly. “We have the best economy anywhere in the world,” he said. “There’s no economy like this economy. The only thing we don’t have is good public relations.” War, high gas prices and persistent inflation had risen to the top of voters’ concerns, displacing the tax bill Republican leaders had planned to promote before November.