Trump cancels Iowa, Kansas midterm events, opts for ‘tele-rallies’

The Republican National Committee has announced broadcasts in at least 20 states after Trump nixes final rallies.

US President Donald Trump delivers remarks at a midterm election campaign rally in Rock Hill, South Carolina, on October 29, 2026 [Jonathan Ernst/Reuters]

With only days left until the 2026 midterm elections, United States President Donald Trump has announced he will scale back his packed rally schedule, cancelling scheduled appearances in Iowa and Kansas.

The Republican National Committee (RNC) confirmed the cancellations in a statement on Thursday, unveiling a slate of “tele-rallies” to replace the cancelled events.

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RNC Chairman Joe Gruters argued that the virtual appearances will be more efficient, reaching more voters than Trump otherwise could with on-the-ground stops.

“Voters across the country want to hear from President Trump before Election Day, and this 72-hour sprint will be a huge boost in the closing days,” Gruters said.

The tele-rallies will be broadcast to nearly 20 states, including battlegrounds like Michigan, Alaska, Texas and Iowa, where competitive races are unfolding for the US Senate.

The RNC statement added that further events may be announced in the coming days.

Trump’s rally on Friday in Daytona Beach, Florida – some 320 kilometres (200 miles) up the coast from his Mar-a-Lago resort – will proceed as planned.

Less than five days remain until the midterm elections on November 3, which will decide the composition of Congress, as well as key state and local offices.

Whichever party controls Congress will shape Trump’s legislative agenda during the final two years of his second term.

Trump has also expressed concern that the Democratic Party might push to impeach him for a third time if it wins majorities in both the House of Representatives and the Senate.

Currently, the Republican Party holds narrow majorities in both chambers. In the Senate, the party holds 53 seats out of 100. In the House, it has 218 seats, with all 435 offices up for grabs this election cycle.

The Senate, meanwhile, will see only about a third of its offices on the midterm ballot. Unlike in the House, where terms only last two years, senators are elected to six-year time spans, and their elections are staggered across different election years, to allow for greater stability.

Political forecasters have predicted Democrats have an advantage this midterm election cycle, citing Trump’s slumping poll numbers and voter blowback over cost-of-living issues, foreign policy and other concerns.

Harvard University’s ElectIt election forecasting model, for instance, has estimated that Democrats have a 94 percent chance of taking control of the House.

The race for the Senate, however, will be more difficult, with fewer seats available to win.

Trump has placed himself at the centre of the Republican strategy to defend the party’s congressional majorities. To motivate his base of support, he has repeatedly encouraged voters with the phrase, “Pretend I’m on the ballot.”

Midterm elections occur halfway through a president’s term, and they are often considered a reflection of a president’s popularity.

At 80 years old, however, Trump will be the oldest president by the time his term concludes, and his health has been a concern.

Since starting his second term, the Republican leader has been photographed with bruising on his hands, sparking speculation about any undisclosed medical conditions he may have.

After concluding a rally in South Carolina on Thursday, reporters inquired about his health.

“Mr President, you’ve been doing a lot of travel. We’ve been doing a lot of travel with you. How are you feeling? How’s your health?” a reporter from the news agency Reuters asked on the tarmac.

Trump, at first, dodged the question, focusing instead on his optimism about the Republican Party’s prospects in the election.

“We’re going to have a strong Tuesday night,” Trump said.

But the reporter continued with his line of questioning: “So you’re not going to Kansas has nothing to do with you being sick of travelling?” That prompted an irate reply from Trump, who lashed out.

“Oh, you’re sick to ask that question. You are sick,” Trump said, as he proceeded to insult the reporter’s weight.

“You’ve been following me for two weeks. I feel perfect. You are disgusting. Put yourself in shape. You look like hell.”

During his remarks to the reporter, Trump also questioned the need to visit Salina, Kansas, as he had planned to do on Saturday. “I don’t feel I have to go to Kansas,” the president said.

Kansas, normally a Republican stronghold, has not elected a Democrat to the Senate since 1932.

But this election cycle, Republican Senator Roger Marshall is facing a tight race with Democrat Adam Hamilton, the pastor of a megachurch.

On Thursday, the news outlet CNN released a poll showing Hamilton up by four percentage points, leading with 49 percent support to Marshall’s 45 percent.

在特朗普取消最后几场竞选集会后，共和党全国委员会宣布将在至少20个州进行电视直播。

2026年10月29日，美国总统唐纳德·特朗普在南卡罗来纳州罗克希尔举行的中期选举竞选集会上发表讲话。[乔纳森·恩斯特/路透社]

距离 2026 年中期选举仅剩几天，美国总统唐纳德·特朗普宣布将缩减其密集的竞选集会日程，取消原定在爱荷华州和堪萨斯州的行程。

共和党全国委员会（RNC）周四发表声明，证实了这些活动被取消，并公布了一系列“电话集会”来取代被取消的活动。

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共和党全国委员会主席乔·格鲁特斯认为，虚拟露面将更加高效，比特朗普亲自到场接触更多选民。

格鲁特斯说：“全国各地的选民都希望在选举日之前听到特朗普总统的声音，这72小时的冲刺将在最后几天起到巨大的推动作用。”

这些电视集会将向近 20 个州播出，其中包括密歇根州、阿拉斯加州、德克萨斯州和爱荷华州等竞争激烈的州，这些州正在进行美国参议院的激烈竞选。

共和党全国委员会的声明还补充说，未来几天可能会宣布更多活动。

特朗普周五在佛罗里达州代托纳海滩举行的竞选集会——距离他的海湖庄园度假村沿海岸线向北约 320 公里（200 英里）——将按计划进行。

距离11月3日举行的中期选举还有不到五天的时间，此次选举将决定国会的组成以及重要的州和地方职位。

无论哪个党派控制国会，都将决定特朗普第二个任期最后两年的立法议程。

特朗普还表示担忧，如果民主党在众议院和参议院都赢得多数席位，可能会第三次推动弹劾他。

目前，共和党在参众两院均仅占微弱多数。在参议院，共和党拥有100个席位中的53个；在众议院，共和党拥有218个席位，而全部435个席位都将在本届选举周期进行改选。

与此同时，参议院只有大约三分之一的席位将在中期选举中进行改选。与众议院两年任期不同，参议员的任期为六年，而且他们的选举错开于不同的选举年，以确保更大的稳定性。

政治预测人士预测，民主党将在本次中期选举周期中占据优势，理由是特朗普的支持率持续下滑，以及选民对生活成本问题、外交政策和其他问题的强烈不满。

例如，哈佛大学的 ElectIt 选举预测模型估计，民主党有 94% 的机会控制众议院。

然而，参议院的竞选将更加艰难，因为可赢得的席位更少。

特朗普将自己置于共和党捍卫国会多数席位战略的核心位置。为了激励他的支持者，他反复用“想象一下我的名字出现在选票上”这句话来鼓励选民。

中期选举在总统任期过半时举行，通常被认为是总统受欢迎程度的体现。

然而，特朗普卸任时将年届 80 岁，成为美国历史上最年长的总统，他的健康状况一直令人担忧。

自第二个任期开始以来，这位共和党领袖多次被拍到手上有瘀伤，引发了人们对他可能患有未公开疾病的猜测。

周四在南卡罗来纳州结束竞选集会后，记者们询问了他的健康状况。

“总统先生，您最近一直在到处奔波。我们也一直陪同您出行。您感觉如何？身体状况如何？”路透社的一名记者在停机坪上问道。

特朗普起初回避了这个问题，而是着重表达了他对共和党在选举中前景的乐观态度。

“周二晚上我们会取得不错的成绩，”特朗普说。

但记者继续追问：“所以你不去堪萨斯州跟你厌倦旅行无关吗？” 这番话激怒了特朗普，他勃然大怒。

“哦，你问这个问题真是病态。你才病态呢。”特朗普说着，开始侮辱记者的体重。

“你跟踪我两周了。我感觉棒极了。你真恶心。好好锻炼一下吧。你看起来糟透了。”

在对记者讲话时，特朗普还质疑了周六访问堪萨斯州萨利纳的必要性，他原计划前往该地。“我觉得我没必要去堪萨斯，”总统说。

堪萨斯州通常是共和党的堡垒，但自 1932 年以来就没有选出过民主党参议员。

但在本届选举周期中，共和党参议员罗杰·马歇尔正面临着与民主党候选人亚当·汉密尔顿（一位大型教会的牧师）的激烈竞争。

周四，新闻媒体 CNN 公布了一项民意调查，结果显示汉密尔顿的支持率领先 4 个百分点，达到 49%，而马歇尔的支持率为 45%。