Politics 4 min read By Alice Ashford
Trump urges Republicans to campaign as if he is on the ballot in midterms
As the US midterm elections approach, Donald Trump is urging Republican voters to treat the ballot as if he were running, while a handful of GOP candidates quietly soften their public ties to the former president.
Donald Trump has a message for Republican voters ahead of this autumn’s midterm elections: pretend he is on the ballot. Speaking at a rally in South Carolina, the former president acknowledged that his supporters do not always turn out when his name is not listed, and asked them to act as though he were running one more time. His appeal comes as Republicans brace for a two-month sprint to Election Day, with control of Congress at stake.
Trump’s popularity among the party’s base remains a central force in Republican strategy, but his national approval ratings are weak. According to Associated Press-NORC polling from July, only 33% of adults approve of his job performance, and he receives poor marks on the economy, immigration and foreign policy. An unpopular war with Iran and lingering inflation have added to the political headwinds. Despite this, most Republican candidates are embracing Trump, whose endorsement was often the most coveted prize in this year’s contested primaries.
A small but notable group of Republican candidates has begun to distance itself from Trump in subtle ways after winning those primaries. In Texas, Carlos De La Cruz, an Air Force veteran and small businessman running for Congress, changed the headline on his campaign website from “TRUMP CONSERVATIVE” to “PROVEN CONSERVATIVE.” Eric Flores, a former assistant US attorney and Texas Army National Guard infantry captain running in South Texas, removed “SUPPORT PRESIDENT TRUMP’S AGENDA” from the top of his priority list and replaced it with “LOWER THE COST OF LIVING.” Trump no longer appears on the homepage, and the endorsement list has been moved to a separate page.
In Kentucky, Ralph Alvarado, who is running in the overwhelmingly Republican 6th Congressional District, deleted all references to Trump from his campaign homepage after winning his primary in May, along with a photo of the two together. He now promises “INDEPENDENT LEADERSHIP” instead of his previous “AMERICA FIRST FIGHTER” branding. His campaign manager, Andy Westberry, said the photo still appears in a media gallery and dismissed the changes as “nonsense.”
Republican officials insist there is no coordinated shift. Mike Marinella, a spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee, called the idea a “manufactured storyline” and said candidates are eager to campaign alongside Trump. Jason Roe, a Republican adviser to Representative Tom Barrett, who faces a competitive race in mid-Michigan, said there is little upside in turning away from Trump because the party’s brand is aligned with him. “You gain nothing from it,” he said.
Still, the changes are visible in at least a half-dozen races, from California to Alaska. Some candidates have highlighted their opposition to specific Trump policies, while others have simply moved his name and image lower on their websites. The balancing act is delicate: vulnerable Republicans must broaden their appeal beyond Trump’s base to win in November, but they risk a backlash from the former president or his loyal supporters if they appear to create too much distance.
Trump is not making avoidance easy. He is scheduled to headline a two-day Republican convention in Dallas as voters begin paying closer attention after Labor Day. His message there is expected to mirror his South Carolina plea: treat the midterms as if he were on the ballot. For now, most Republican candidates are still wrapping their arms around him, betting that his ability to mobilise loyalists outweighs his unpopularity with the wider electorate.
