President Donald Trump told a crowd in Kansas Sunday that he "could have been at home watching television," as a new poll showed Democrats leading in all seven battleground Senate races. Trump won Kansas and Iowa—where he also rallied Sunday—comfortably in 2024, but with control of the U.S. Senate at stake, Republicans are relying on the president to help defend seats in both states, as polling from The New York Times/Siena showed Democrats running unusually close in historically red territory.
"For the past 32 days, I've traveled all across the country, spoken at…this is my 30th rally," Trump told the crowd in Salina, Kansas. "I'm closing it down tonight. I had to come here and make sure that Roger got elected.
He's a good man, he's a great man, actually, he's one of the most respected people in Washington. "I didn't want to take a chance. I could have been home watching television, or some crappy thing; I'd rather be with you," Trump said.
His closing message included attacks on Democratic Kansas Senate candidate Adam Hamilton, a renewed suggestion that the Strait of Hormuz be renamed the Trump Strait and New Mexico be renamed "New America," and an appeal to ranchers to provide more beef amid high prices. Earlier Sunday evening, the Times/Siena survey, of 5,708 likely voters across key battleground states October 23-November 1, showed Democrats taking the lead in all seven states. Newsweek reached out to the Democratic National Committee and the Republican National Committee for comment via email outside of normal working hours Sunday evening.
Kansas has not elected a Democrat to the Senate since 1932, but the party is hoping it can finally flip one of the state's two seats with Hamilton. The polling released by the Times Sunday showed the Democrat with a 5-point lead over his rival, GOP Senator Roger Marshall. Hamilton had 49 percent of the vote compared to 44 percent for Marshall, according to the survey of 736 likely voters.
The last Times poll, from September 22-30, showed the candidates with 45 percent each. Iowa's race appeared far closer, with Democrat Josh Turek showing a 1-point lead over GOP Rep. Ashley Hinson, with a 48-47 split.
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