Donald Trump has left domestic and international issues completely aside and has been basically focused only on the campaign for weeks. He travels around the country, appears at rallies, praises his candidates, attacks Democrats and encourages Americans to go to the polls. He has been on the move in recent weeks. Stage, speech, music, plane, another state - and another stage.
In Texas, Trump danced four times this campaign. If someone forgot for a moment that it was the midterm elections, they might think they were watching the end of the presidential campaign. There is only one detail: Trump is not running this time, but that doesn't mean he has nothing to fight for. At stake is control over Congress, and therefore also what the next two years of his presidency will look like. Donald Trump may have ideas, he may issue regulations, he may organize press conferences and announce further grand plans, but if the Democrats take over one of the houses of Congress, the implementation of some of these plans will become much more difficult, and that is why the president decided to do what he likes best: go on tour, get on stage and try to get voters behind him. Speaking of the scene - let's start with Dallas. In September, Republicans organized something in Texas that they had never done before: a nationwide party convention before the midterm elections.
We usually associate such large conventions with presidential elections. Balloons, flags, speeches, crowds of delegates and a grand finale during which the party shows its candidate for president. However, this year there was no need to choose a presidential candidate. The president is here. His name is Donald Trump. The event had one primary goal: to mobilize voters before the November vote. Did it mobilize you? In Texas, a Democrat can win.
According to the latest research, Republicans will lose the House of Representatives and perhaps even the Senate. It should be remembered that the midterm elections are often a difficult moment for the party of the incumbent president. After two years, some voters are disappointed, some are tired, and some simply want to give the government a warning signal. This is nothing unusual in American politics. In 2018, during Trump's first presidency, Democrats wrested control of the House of Representatives from Republicans. Now Trump is trying to prevent it from happening again and that's why he has thrown his all into the campaign.
In recent weeks, he visited other places, supported candidates and convinced his supporters that they must treat these elections as seriously as if he himself were on the ballot. This shows his strategy very well. Trump knows he can mobilize millions of people. He knows that he has voters who come primarily for him. The problem is that today they won't put a cross next to his name. They will elect congressmen, some senators, governors and many other government representatives, and the president wants these voters to recognize: a vote for the Republican candidate is also a vote for his policies.
Trump told his supporters to imagine that it was him on the ballot - and in that one sentence virtually his entire plan was contained. However, this plan also involves risks, because Trump is able to mobilize not only his supporters. He can also mobilize his opponents, and when the president becomes the main character of the campaign, Democrats can tell their voters exactly the same: treat this vote as an evaluation of Donald Trump.
In this way, elections in which the president's name is not on the cards also become a great test of his popularity. For some, Trump is a reason to vote for Republicans. For others, it is a reason to vote against them. There are still voters in the middle who don't necessarily think about great political spectacles. They look at their bills. On prices in stores. At the expense of life. They ask themselves whether their family is better off today.
For a candidate in an evenly matched district, the president's arrival may be an opportunity to fill the hall, attract media attention and stimulate his own electorate, but it may also cause the conversation about local problems to be covered by emotions related to Trump himself.
In one place, a photo with the president can help. In another case, a candidate may prefer to talk primarily about himself and the issues of his district. This is what American politics is like. Even the biggest star doesn't work the same everywhere. In the last weekend before the election, Trump went to, among others, Iowa and Kansas. These are states where he previously won decisively, and yet Republicans are still struggling to mobilize voters there. This is also an interesting picture of this campaign. The president cannot assume that enthusiasm from his own choices will automatically translate into votes for other candidates. These people need to be convinced to leave their homes again or to vote earlier. However, convincing a voter who has already helped Trump win once is not always as easy as it may seem. He may like the president but not know the candidate for Congress. He may believe that now that Trump is in the White House, the most important battle has been won. Or just not feeling the same emotions as during the presidential election.
That's why Trump is back on stage. That's why he calls on his supporters to vote. That's why we have this endless series of rallies. Of course, the campaign is also more than a political obligation for him. Trump likes direct contact with the audience. He likes to hear the room's reaction, respond to shouts, improvise and give events his own rhythm. He is in his element at the rally. He can talk for a long time, he can joke, he can attack his opponents, and finally - set to music - he can perform a few moves that his supporters already know perfectly well. And there you have it - politics, campaign and dance floor in one. But on Tuesday the music will stop for a while. And instead of looking at the stage, Americans will look at the ballots.
We won't know then whether Donald Trump will become president. He already is and the result of the midterm elections will not change that. However, we will find out whether his party will maintain control of Congress or whether the Democrats will gain tools that will allow them to keep a much closer eye on the administration.
For Trump himself, this will be the answer to one more question: whether he can transfer the energy from his rallies to the results of the candidates whose names will appear on the ballots. Because on stage anything can look like great fun. The crowd chants, music plays, the president dances, but the final verdict will be given not by the rally participants, but by the voters. Only then will we know whether this political dance has ended in victory for the Republicans.
