It’s a familiar pattern in politics that the president’s party often loses out during a midterm election year.
But as polling shows November moving more and more in Democrats’ favor, President Trump and Republicans are diverting their time, and money, in states that just two years ago were all in for the Republican president.
Since late September, Trump and Vice President JD Vance have been on a campaign blitz to boost GOP candidates. Some stops have been in states that Trump said he wanted to “thank” for their support. Others have been in states with critical House and Senate races that could determine control of Congress in less than two weeks.
Since Oct. 1, Trump and Vance have most frequently stumped in Ohio, the vice president’s home state, where Republican Senator Jon Husted is facing a tough challenge from Democrat Sherrod Brown, who served as senator from the state for 18 years before losing in 2024.
Trump won Ohio by 11 points in 2024.
Texas has been a frequent stop, too, with Trump touching down there twice this month and Vance stumping last week to boost the state’s Republican attorney general, Ken Paxton, who’s locked in a close Senate race against Democrat James Talarico. In 2024, Trump won the state by nearly 14 points.
And in ruby states like Florida, Republicans are starting to stress about their chances in some House races, even after the state redrew the congressional map to help Republicans’ odds. Trump beat former vice president Kamala Harris in the Sunshine State by 13 points.
“They’re deploying the president to the places where he can be the most helpful,” GOP pollster Jon McHenry told the Globe by phone Friday.
“So much of what this election is about for Republicans is getting the people who voted for Donald Trump in 2024 to turn out in the midterms,” McHenry added.
This week the president stumped in Iowa and South Carolina — two more states he won by double digits where Democrats have been gaining surprising ground in key Senate races. And he’s scheduled to rally in Mississippi on Monday, where Republicans are flooding cash to back GOP Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith.
It’s not necessarily unusual for a Republican president to tour the states where he’s most liked, McHenry said.
But, “saying we’re going to go spend a million dollars in the Mississippi Senate race, that sounds like pushing a panic button,” he added.
The map shows where Trump and Vance have campaigned since Oct. 1. It includes planned events, as detailed in official campaign schedules, through Oct. 25.
This graphic will be updated. Check back as the elections play out.
Kaitlin Lewis can be reached at Kaitlin.Lewis@globe.com. Follow her on X @kblewey.