Trump Cancels Kansas Rally as Senate Race Tightens
Trump called off plans to visit Salina on Saturday, where he was due to campaign for Republican Sen. Roger Marshall against Democratic challenger Adam Hamilton. On “Morning Joe” on October 30, host Joe Scarborough rejected Trump’s explanation that Marshall was doing well enough not to need another visit, saying Republican operatives had told him the race was already lost.
Jonathan Lemire, a fellow commentator on the program, said Trump had also dropped appearances in Kansas and Iowa because he did not want to appear beside candidates he believed might lose. Trump’s cancellation came on October 29. He had visited the area near Wichita on October 19, and Vice President JD Vance made a stop in Topeka on October 26.
Kansas has not elected a Democratic senator since 1932, and Trump carried the state by 16 percentage points in 2024. But one poll put Hamilton at 49 percent and Marshall at 45 percent. The cancellation comes ahead of next Tuesday’s midterm elections, as Republicans face growing risks to their Senate majority. Scarborough also criticized Trump’s reactions to reporters’ questions, saying he was worried about the president.
Trump Pulls Kansas Rally as Republican Senate Seat Slips
Trump’s cancellation of a planned Salina rally leaves Republican Sen. Roger Marshall without the president’s help in a race now testing the party’s grip on the Senate. On October 30, Joe Scarborough said Republican operatives had told him the contest was already lost, dismissing Trump’s claim that Marshall was doing well enough to manage without another visit.
Jonathan Lemire said Trump had also dropped appearances in Kansas and Iowa because he did not want to stand beside candidates he thought might lose. The polling figures were stark: Democrat Adam Hamilton had 49 percent, compared with Marshall’s 45 percent. Trump won Kansas by 16 points in 2024, and the state has not elected a Democratic senator since 1932.
Trump visited the area near Wichita on October 19, and Vice President JD Vance made a stop in Topeka on October 26. But the canceled Saturday event comes as Republicans face growing danger to their Senate majority ahead of next Tuesday’s midterms. Scarborough also criticized Trump’s angry responses to reporters’ questions, saying he was worried about the president.
Pundits Turn Trump’s Kansas Rally Cancellation Into a Political Story
The cancellation of President Donald Trump’s planned Salina rally has become a political narrative on “Morning Joe,” where Joe Scarborough said some Republican insiders expect Sen. Roger Marshall to lose. Scarborough called Trump’s explanation—that Marshall was doing well enough without another visit—untrue, but the claim about the race came from sources whose names were not given on air.
Jonathan Lemire offered another interpretation, saying Trump had dropped appearances in Kansas and Iowa because he did not want to be associated with candidates he thought could lose. That remains the commentators’ account of his motive. Trump held a campaign event near Wichita on October 19, while Vice President JD Vance made a Topeka stop on October 26.
One poll put Democrat Adam Hamilton at 49 percent and Marshall at 45 percent, though Kansas has not elected a Democratic senator since 1932 and Trump carried the state by 16 points in 2024. The cancellation came ahead of next Tuesday’s midterms, with control of the Senate at stake. Scarborough also used the show to criticize Trump’s exchanges with reporters.
Reported by Raw Story, The Daily Beast.
