Trump Rallies in Mississippi as Midterm Map Widens for Republicans

President Donald Trump held a rally in Corinth, Mississippi, on Monday, part of a closing blitz of midterm appearances that underscores the challenges Republicans face with a week left before an election that could reshape power in Washington and in statehouses nationwide.

Speaking to the crowd with a noticeably hoarse voice, Trump said he was there to support Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith. "Cindy's doing great, but I just got to make sure. I can't take a chance," he said. Hyde-Smith is facing an unexpectedly tough challenge from Democrat Scott Colom, who was seen at the rally site. From the stage, Trump later called Colom a "Marxist radical" and a "shameless phony who pretends to be a moderate."

Colom said he went to listen to what Trump supporters had on their minds. "They actually deserve a senator that will listen to them, that actually cares about what they think, actually cares about what they're going through," he said before the president arrived.

Mississippi is among the most reliably Republican states, and a late-October presidential visit is not what the party had planned for. Still, Democratic underdogs like Colom have widened the House and Senate battleground maps, fueled by voter frustration over inflation, the Iran war and other aspects of Trump's second term. Hyde-Smith remains the favorite in a state Trump won three times by an average of nearly 20 percentage points. Colom, a local prosecutor, would be Mississippi's first Black senator since Reconstruction. Senate Democrats' super PAC has made a late $1.2 million investment, and the state has not elected a new Democratic senator since 1947.

Trump's schedule this week also includes stops in Texas, South Carolina and Iowa, states he won comfortably in 2024. Officials announced late Monday that he will hold a rally Saturday in Salina, Kansas, his second visit to the state in under two weeks. At the Mississippi event, Trump said he had expected gas prices to climb even higher and described the war with Iran as something that "worked out fine" and "will be over soon."

Democrats were active as well. More than 30 million ballots have already been cast, according to data The Associated Press collected from election administrators. Former Vice President Kamala Harris campaigned in Wisconsin for Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, who is running for governor against Rep. Tom Tiffany, a Trump ally. Crowley would be the state's first Black governor. "This is a tight race because the stakes are so high," Harris said.

In Michigan, Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed distanced himself from an ad by Rebellion PAC that blames high grocery prices on U.S. support for Israel. His spokesperson, Roxie Richner, said the ad is not affiliated with the campaign. U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens, who narrowly lost the Democratic primary to El-Sayed, condemned the spot.

Vice President JD Vance campaigned in Kansas for Sen. Roger Marshall, who is in a close race with Democratic nominee and pastor Adam Hamilton, in a state where Democrats have not won a Senate race since 1932. Marshall, who has raised far less money than Hamilton, said Democrats are energized "like it's a presidential year." Vance also appeared earlier in Belgrade, Montana, with Republican candidates Aaron Flint and Kurt Alme.

Sen. Tim Scott, who chairs the National Republican Senatorial Committee, told The Associated Press that GOP candidates are "closing very strongly" nationwide. In New York, Rep. Mike Lawler, in a tight race with Democrat Cait Conley, worked a McDonald's drive-thru, echoing a Trump stunt from two years ago even as he stresses his independence from the president.