Trump Rallies in Alabama Ahead of Midterms, Acknowledging Low Approval Ratings
The former president visits Mobile to thank loyal voters in a state he carried overwhelmingly in past elections, as Republicans eye a competitive House seat.
Former President Donald Trump will hold a rally Friday night in Mobile, Alabama, the latest stop on a tour of reliably Republican states aimed at boosting midterm election turnout. Trump stated his intention to visit states that have strongly supported him to express gratitude.
Trump won Alabama by significant margins in 2016, 2020, and 2024. "I'm going because you have to thank these states that are with you 1,000%," Trump said. "And I haven't been there in a while, and I want to just thank them."
This visit comes as an AP-NORC poll indicates Trump's job approval rating has reached a low of 31% during his terms, with 69% disapproving. The rally is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET at the University of South Alabama's Mitchell Center.
Mobile was redrawn into Alabama's 1st Congressional District, a reliably Republican area where Trump would have secured approximately 40% more votes than his opponent in 2024. The city holds historical significance for Trump; it was in Mobile in August 2015 that then-Sen. Jeff Sessions endorsed him, a moment considered pivotal for his Republican nomination bid. Trump also held a post-election "thank you" event in Mobile after his 2016 victory.
Several Republican lawmakers are expected to join Trump, including Sen. Tommy Tuberville and former Rep. Jerry Carl, the GOP nominee for the state's 1st Congressional District. Rep. Barry Moore, the Republican nominee for the U.S. Senate, also plans to attend.
A key race highlighted by the rally is in Alabama's 2nd Congressional District. Following the Supreme Court's ruling that weakened the Voting Rights Act, Alabama reinstated a congressional map previously found discriminatory against Black voters. Republican state Rep. Rhett Marques is challenging Democratic Rep. Shomari Figures in this district. Figures won the seat in 2024 under a court-drawn map, but the Cook Political Report now labels him an "underdog," and ABC News rates the race as likely Republican. This contest is among several that could influence control of the House.
Following the Alabama rally, Trump is scheduled to campaign in Ohio, focusing on a competitive Senate race between incumbent GOP Sen. Jon Husted and Democrat Sherrod Brown.