Trump Tells Ohio Rally to 'Pretend I'm Running' as Upper Bleachers Sit Empty
Speaking for 93 minutes in a Dayton-area high school gym, the president campaigned for Senate candidate Jon Husted and governor candidate Vivek Ramaswamy 31 days before the midterms.
President Donald Trump told a crowd in Vandalia, Ohio, on Saturday night that Republicans are headed for "a big surprise" in the November midterms, then asked supporters to act as if his name were on the ballot. "Just pretend that I'm running," he said. "When I run, we win."
The rally took place in the gymnasium at Butler High School, near Dayton, a venue that seats about 5,000 people and is smaller than the arenas Trump has often filled. NBC News reported noticeable empty sections in the upper bleachers. Trump spoke for 93 minutes. "I think we're going to have a big surprise, because they don't know what's happening," he told the crowd.
The president came to Ohio to boost two statewide candidates. Sen. Jon Husted, appointed to the seat once held by Vice President JD Vance, faces Democrat Sherrod Brown in one of the most expensive and closely watched Senate races in the country. Vivek Ramaswamy, the Republican nominee for governor, is running against Democrat Amy Acton. Trump also praised Rep. Mike Turner and House candidates including Derek Merrin.
Trump acknowledged a problem Republicans face every cycle: voters who show up for him in presidential years but skip midterms. The "pretend I'm running" line was his answer to that, an appeal to lower-propensity supporters who tend to stay home when he is not on the ballot. The visit was part of plans to stump in at least 17 states before the Nov. 3 election.
Much of the speech was an argument that the economy is working. Trump pointed to a $400 million Stellantis investment in Toledo, an $850 million Electra aerospace facility near Springfield and a $2.2 billion Bayer pharmaceutical campus near Columbus. "Your state is booming," he said. "Every state is booming." He defended his tariffs, saying they push companies to build in the United States rather than move to China.
He also tried to defuse an issue that has caused trouble for Husted. Trump defended data centers, which have drawn voter complaints over electricity costs, and said he supports Husted's Ratepayer Protection Act, a bill aimed at shielding household customers from data center power costs. His campaign has also defended support for the war with Iran as voters grumble about gas prices.
The speech carried the sharper edge Trump brings to rallies. He recited "The Snake," a poem he has used to talk about immigration, and dedicated it to Springfield, Ohio, a city that became a flashpoint over immigration claims during the 2024 campaign. He also said the United States profited from its military operation against Venezuela's former government, and he directed insults at Democrats.
The political backdrop is difficult for the party in power. The Associated Press reported this week that only 17% of Americans approve of Trump's handling of inflation, and gasoline and grocery prices remain a top concern. Republicans are defending majorities in both chambers of Congress, and Ohio is one of the states where control of the Senate could be decided.
Trump's closing pitch was that having Republicans in power would give Ohio officials a direct line to his administration and make it easier to secure federal help. With 31 days to go, the rally offered the clearest view yet of the argument he plans to carry into the final month: that the economy is strong, that Democrats cannot be trusted, and that voters should treat a midterm like a presidential race.
