{"id":510,"date":"2026-07-07T18:44:44","date_gmt":"2026-07-07T18:44:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=510"},"modified":"2026-07-07T18:44:44","modified_gmt":"2026-07-07T18:44:44","slug":"so-far-trumps-midterm-campaign-schedule-slightly-behind-2018-pace","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=510","title":{"rendered":"So far, Trump’s midterm campaign schedule slightly behind 2018 pace"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

President Donald Trump\u2019s midterms campaign schedule has been lighter this year than his pace of hitting the road for Republican candidates during a 2018 midterm elections cycle that saw big Democratic gains.<\/p>\n

Read more Progressive staff group urges sexual misconduct overhaul<\/a><\/p>\n

The GOP campaigner in chief had, between Jan. 1, 2018 and July 7, 2018, held nine road shows to boost Republican congressional hopefuls, according to a CQ Roll Call analysis. This year, Trump has held five events to either help GOP candidates in tight reelection races, or in the case of events in Kentucky and Georgia, make his case to Republican primary voters against Rep. Thomas Massie and weigh in on the primary to replace Marjorie Taylor Greene, who resigned amid a spat with the Trump administration.\u00a0<\/p>\n

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt has said several times this year that Trump will be an active campaigner heading into the summer and fall midterms homestretch.\u00a0Susie Wiles, White House chief of staff, said late last year that her plan was for Trump to have a robust midterm campaign schedule.<\/p>\n

\u201cTypically in the midterms it\u2019s not about who\u2019s sitting at the White House. You localize the election, and you keep the federal officials out of it. We\u2019re actually going to turn that on its head and put him on the ballot because so many of those low-propensity voters are Trump voters,\u201d Wiles told \u201cThe Mom View,\u201d an online talk show, in December.<\/p>\n

One GOP strategist, granted anonymity to speak candidly, said pro-Trump \u201clow-propensity voters\u201d \u2014 meaning voters who have a history of sitting out elections \u2014 would be key come November. <\/p>\n

The House map favors Democrats and analysts at the University of Virginia\u2019s Center for Politics recently assessed that there\u2019s a narrow path opening for the party to also take control of the Senate. (That path, however, could have narrowed Monday after new allegations against Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner).<\/p>\n

\u201cIn a turnout election, those voters are even more important. They like Trump, but might not like the [Republican] candidate,\u201d the strategist said during a telephone interview. \u201cThat\u2019s where the president can help out, getting the \u2018low-propensity voters\u2019 out.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s last midterms road show came on June 23, when he put his questionable coattails to the test in one of this cycle\u2019s toughest congressional battleground districts. But like during other midterms campaign stops, Trump mostly focused on a slew of other topics, never even uttering the name of GOP Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, who is in a tough reelection fight.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve got to get a certain very talented congressman reelected,\u201d the president said, initially not name-checking the incumbent. \u201cWhere are you? Where are you, Mr. Congressman?\u201d<\/p>\n

Trump then veered into his signature speaking style, which he calls \u201cthe weave,\u201d before again not dropping Mackenzie\u2019s name. \u201cWe\u2019ve got to make sure you vote for our congressman here,\u201d Trump said at a Mack Trucks plant. \u201cI\u2019m not doing this for my health.\u201d<\/p>\n

In fact, he did not utter the Republican congressman\u2019s name until the event\u2019s 54th minute \u2014 and after another speaker had done so. \u201cWe got to get Ryan elected. Run up here, Ryan. Fast. Nobody wants to hear you,\u201d Trump quipped before the lawmaker address the crowd of voters for all of 18 seconds.<\/p>\n

To be sure, Trump has given most of the candidates for whom he has made 2026 appearances relatively short shrift at his handful of midterms events.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Read more Congress faces its own summer heat dome<\/a><\/p>\n

Democratic strategist Brad Bannon said in an email that \u201cTrump, with his monumental ego, can\u2019t even acknowledge the existence of other Republicans, much less speak kindly about them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRepublican congressional hopefuls shouldn\u2019t be so eager to enlist Trump for their local rallies if the weak attendance for the president\u2019s 4th of July celebration on the National Mall is any indication. On the other hand, Democrats should foot the bill for Trump\u2019s campaign travels on Air Qatar to take full advantage of his anemic poll numbers in purple congressional districts,\u201d Bannon added, referring to the 747-8 luxury airliner the Persian Gulf country gifted to Trump last year.<\/p>\n

While the president has held three fewer events this year compared to 2018 aimed at specific GOP candidates, he has traveled for a handful of events ostensibly to talk up the party\u2019s 2025 tax and spending law and his administration\u2019s efforts to drive down still-high prices. What\u2019s more, he has headlined several fundraisers for the party and been the keynote speaker at the Republican National Committee\u2019s Spring Retreat and at a high-profile gathering of conservatives in Arizona put on by the influential Turning Point USA organization.\u00a0<\/p>\n

By comparison, Trump in 2018 also was the guest of honor at several party fundraisers and one big-ticket National Republican Senatorial Committee luncheon in Houston. Back then, Trump also was raising money for his own coming 2020 reelection bid. After flirting with a legally dubious bid for a third term, Trump has said several times this year that he has run his last presidential race.<\/p>\n

September sojourn <\/h2>\n

The data examined also revealed that Trump held more midterms campaign events by this time in 2018 despite more foreign travel \u2014 though he has had ample time taken up by the conflict with Iran. Trump landed in Ankara, Turkey, on Tuesday for a two-day NATO summit. The White House has not announced any additional campaign-related trips, but has signaled more are coming.<\/p>\n

Trump is expected to meet with his Irish counterpart, Miche\u00e1l Martin, in Dublin in early September, and is expected to visit his Trump International Golf Links & Hotel in Doonbeg, Ireland, during the first part of that global swing. The course is slated to host the 2026 Irish Open, an event put on by the top professional golf league in Europe that typically includes a number of the world\u2019s top golfers, some of whom Trump considers friends.<\/p>\n

That expected weeklong trip would come several weeks before some states begin sending out mail-in ballots and less than two months before voters will head to the polls on Nov. 3 to decide control of the House and Senate. Trump in recent months has appeared more interested in things like his White House ballroom and helipad projects, his events around America\u2019s 250th birthday, as well as various projects around Washington.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s slightly lighter campaign travel rate comes as a number of recent polls have put his approval rating on economic matters below 40 percent. A Fox News survey conducted in mid-June put his economic approval rating at 31 percent against a 68 percent disapproval rating level. And a poll conducted by Reuters and Ipsos had Trump\u2019s approval on those issues at 29 percent, with .<\/p>\n

But one former White House official said Monday that Trump has been handed a new campaign attack line after several democratic socialists have won Democratic congressional primaries. The president likely will take his anti-communism message into competitive races.<\/p>\n

\u201c[T]his has been building for years, but now the Democratic Party isn\u2019t just tolerating socialists, it\u2019s electing them,\u201d Harrison Fields, a former deputy White House press secretary during Trump\u2019s second term, wrote Monday on X. \u201cOpenly communist ideas are no longer fringe, they\u2019re on the ballot and winning. That\u2019s not a warning sign. That\u2019s a takeover in progress.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Former House GOP tax writer Bill Archer dies at 98<\/a><\/p>\n

Bill Frischling contributed to this report<\/em>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

President Donald Trump\u2019s midterms campaign schedule has been lighter this year than his pace of hitting the road for Republican candidates during a 2018 midterm elections cycle that saw big Democratic gains. The GOP campaigner in chief had, between Jan. 1, 2018 and July 7, 2018, held nine road shows to boost Republican congressional hopefuls, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":509,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-510","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-campaigns"],"yoast_head":"\nSo far, Trump’s midterm campaign schedule slightly behind 2018 pace - American Industry Review<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=510\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"So far, Trump’s midterm campaign schedule slightly behind 2018 pace - American Industry Review\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"President Donald Trump\u2019s midterms campaign schedule has been lighter this year than his pace of hitting the road for Republican candidates during a 2018 midterm elections cycle that saw big Democratic gains. The GOP campaigner in chief had, between Jan. 1, 2018 and July 7, 2018, held nine road shows to boost Republican congressional hopefuls, […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=510\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"American Industry Review\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-07-07T18:44:44+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=510#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=510\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/f31b66192ea99275704b1c4c1195d2bd\"},\"headline\":\"So far, Trump’s midterm campaign schedule slightly behind 2018 pace\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-07T18:44:44+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=510\"},\"wordCount\":1246,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=510#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/c981b3f5841dd324c2a2b9bd070e2212.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Campaigns\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=510#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=510\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=510\",\"name\":\"So far, Trump’s midterm campaign schedule slightly behind 2018 pace - American Industry Review\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=510#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=510#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/c981b3f5841dd324c2a2b9bd070e2212.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-07T18:44:44+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/f31b66192ea99275704b1c4c1195d2bd\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=510#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=510\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=510#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/c981b3f5841dd324c2a2b9bd070e2212.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/c981b3f5841dd324c2a2b9bd070e2212.jpg\",\"width\":1024,\"height\":683,\"caption\":\"US President Donald Trump appears on stage with US Representative Ryan Mackenzie, Republican of Pennsylvania, during a visit to the Mack Trucks manufacturing facility in Macungie, Pennsylvania, on June 23, 2026. (Photo by Mandel NGAN \\\/ AFP via Getty Images)\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?p=510#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"So far, Trump’s midterm campaign schedule slightly behind 2018 pace\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"American Industry Review\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/f31b66192ea99275704b1c4c1195d2bd\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/americanindustryreview.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"So far, Trump’s midterm campaign schedule slightly behind 2018 pace - American Industry Review","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=510","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"So far, Trump’s midterm campaign schedule slightly behind 2018 pace - American Industry Review","og_description":"President Donald Trump\u2019s midterms campaign schedule has been lighter this year than his pace of hitting the road for Republican candidates during a 2018 midterm elections cycle that saw big Democratic gains. The GOP campaigner in chief had, between Jan. 1, 2018 and July 7, 2018, held nine road shows to boost Republican congressional hopefuls, […]","og_url":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=510","og_site_name":"American Industry Review","article_published_time":"2026-07-07T18:44:44+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=510#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=510"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/#\/schema\/person\/f31b66192ea99275704b1c4c1195d2bd"},"headline":"So far, Trump’s midterm campaign schedule slightly behind 2018 pace","datePublished":"2026-07-07T18:44:44+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=510"},"wordCount":1246,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=510#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/c981b3f5841dd324c2a2b9bd070e2212.jpg","articleSection":["Campaigns"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=510#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=510","url":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=510","name":"So far, Trump’s midterm campaign schedule slightly behind 2018 pace - American Industry Review","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=510#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=510#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/c981b3f5841dd324c2a2b9bd070e2212.jpg","datePublished":"2026-07-07T18:44:44+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/#\/schema\/person\/f31b66192ea99275704b1c4c1195d2bd"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=510#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=510"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=510#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/c981b3f5841dd324c2a2b9bd070e2212.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/c981b3f5841dd324c2a2b9bd070e2212.jpg","width":1024,"height":683,"caption":"US President Donald Trump appears on stage with US Representative Ryan Mackenzie, Republican of Pennsylvania, during a visit to the Mack Trucks manufacturing facility in Macungie, Pennsylvania, on June 23, 2026. (Photo by Mandel NGAN \/ AFP via Getty Images)"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?p=510#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"So far, Trump’s midterm campaign schedule slightly behind 2018 pace"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/","name":"American Industry Review","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/#\/schema\/person\/f31b66192ea99275704b1c4c1195d2bd","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/americanindustryreview.com"],"url":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/510","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=510"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/510\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/509"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=510"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=510"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/americanindustryreview.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=510"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}