Trump Invites Haley Stevens to Join GOP and Calls El-Sayed a 'Nasty Guy' at Dubuque Rally as Early Vote Tops 54 Million

Two days before Tuesday's midterms, Trump's Dubuque speech on Sunday, Nov. 1, became the main stage for the Michigan Senate fight that has split Democrats over the past 24 hours.

Trump spoke for roughly two hours at the Five Flags Center to a crowd of about 5,000. He then flew on to Salina, Kansas, for the last stop of a campaign stretch in which he headlined more than two dozen rallies in October.

Trump and the Stevens endorsement

Hours after Stevens endorsed Rogers, Trump praised her from the podium. "She was very brave in doing it," he said. "I don't know Haley, I've never met Haley, but Haley said what few people are willing to say. I'd love her to join the Republican Party. Actually, I think that could happen."

Stevens lost the Democratic primary to El-Sayed. She has criticized him as insufficiently supportive of Israel. In her endorsement video she said El-Sayed had told her she was no longer welcome in his campaign and should stay away. A planned appearance with El-Sayed and Rep. Jim Clyburn at a church event fell through. Rep. Debbie Dingell, who organized it, said she asked Stevens not to attend and that Stevens told her she would abide by that. Stevens instead appeared with Rogers at a separate Detroit church service.

Trump's remarks about El-Sayed were far harsher. He called the Michigan nominee a "nasty guy" who needs to get his "a-- kicked," and he defended mocking him by calling him "Mohamed." "I'm President, Abdul, and I have the right to call you whatever the hell I want," Trump said.

El-Sayed answered the Stevens move by saying, "At the end of the day, I actually don't think about Haley Stevens." He said he cares more about health care, education and the cost of living than "the politics of it all." He also urged voters who "stand up to hate" to reject Rogers, Trump and Vice President JD Vance.

Democratic leaders moved to contain the damage. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said the party was "united in our support." Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, who chairs the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, said Democrats would "stand firmly" behind El-Sayed and "reject any efforts to divide Democrats." Sen. Bernie Sanders said on CBS's "Face the Nation" that Stevens "lost a very, very close primary. I can understand being upset about that," and that voters statewide were going to "stand with Abdul."

The Michigan seat carries weight beyond the state. If Democrats lose it, the AP reports, they would face added pressure to win races in deeper Republican territory such as Texas.

Iowa and Kansas: GOP on defense

Trump won Iowa by double digits in 2024. Reuters reports that polls now show Democrats tied with or leading Republicans in many of the state's races. Cook Political Report rates the open Senate race between Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson, Democratic state Rep. Josh Turek and Libertarian Thomas Laehn as a "Toss Up." The open governor's race and the state's four open U.S. House races, three of them competitive, are also tight, and the 2nd District, which includes Dubuque, is among the competitive ones.

Kansas last elected a Democratic senator in 1932. Democrat Adam Hamilton is running a strong enough race to have Republicans worried, per the AP.

Trump dismissed the polls showing Democrats gaining. About 50 minutes into the speech he brought up Speaker Mike Johnson, who said, "It is not over. Tuesday is when we decide." Johnson called the polling "fake polls" produced by "the corrupt media." Trump urged the crowd to vote as if he were on the ballot, and told them Republicans would sweep: "We're going to elect 'America first' Republicans up and down the line."

The economic and foreign-policy backdrop is the part Republicans cannot rally away. The AP says voters, including past Trump supporters, are questioning the fallout from his tariffs and the war in Iran. Reuters/Ipsos polling put his approval among rural Americans at 45 percent in October, a new low. Sen. Tim Scott, who runs the Senate Republican campaign committee, did not dodge the point on NBC's "Meet the Press": "His agenda, without any question, is on the ballot."

The early vote

More than 54 million votes have been cast, up from 52 million reported earlier in the weekend, per the AP. The University of Florida's Election Lab had put the pre-Election Day total at nearly 46 million in 2022.

In Iowa, the Secretary of State's office says absentee submissions are almost 20 percent above the 2022 midterm level. Of the ballots returned three days out, 202,569 came from registered Democrats, 149,340 from registered Republicans and 84,205 from voters with no party. Those figures show party registration of the voters who returned ballots, not how any of them voted.

Protests and the mural tarp

Protesters lined the motorcade route and gathered outside the venue. Photographers from Reuters and Getty captured signs including calls for impeachment and an end to the Iran war, along with several obscene gestures and insults aimed at Trump. According to the Iowa Capital Dispatch, Hinson asked the crowd inside to chant "U.S.A." so protesters outside could hear. The Des Moines Register reported hecklers inside the hall as well.

A separate dispute came before the event. A tarp was placed Saturday over Dubuque artist Shelby Fry's "Solidarity" mural, a 105-by-28-foot work on the city-owned civic center that has hung there since 2020. The city said late Saturday it was not asked whether the exterior could be modified and "did not authorize the tarp." KCRG-TV reported the White House had wanted a U.S. flag displayed on the building. The White House has not been quoted explaining the tarp.

Alaska

The Alaska Senate race has also drawn fresh attention. A New York Times investigation alleges that Democrat Mary Peltola's campaign and national Democratic operatives searched voter rolls for a second Dan Sullivan to put on the ballot against incumbent Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan. Peltola and the DSCC deny it. Alaska resident Philip Meeks told Fox News the second candidate, teacher Daniel J. Sullivan, appeared to have entered the race to confuse voters. The Justice Department's court action in the state was covered in our earlier reporting.

Polls open Tuesday, Nov. 3. Thirty-five Senate seats and all 435 House seats are on the ballot, and Republicans hold narrow majorities in both chambers.

Whether Stevens' endorsement moves any Michigan votes, and whether Trump's invitation to her turns into anything, will not be known until the votes are counted.