Trump diverted from swing state visits for a hometown rally that drew an estimated 25,000.
NEW YORK CITY—With just nine days to go before the Nov. 5 presidential election, former President Donald Trump is diverting from swing state visits for a hometown rally at Madison Square Garden in the heart of Manhattan.
Bill Robinson, 65, of Asheville, North Carolina, arrived two days beforehand to claim the first spot in line for the sold-out event. Organizers say the venue can accommodate 25,000 attendees. Robinson said he expected it to be “the granddaddy of all Trump rallies.”
“This is the last big push before the election. This is the last time Trump will make his case with an absolute all-star group behind it,” he told The Epoch Times, while he and other supporters sat in folding chairs outside the venue on Oct. 26.
Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, and his Democratic opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, remain in a statistical tie in the RealClearPolitics average of election polls, although Trump has been trending upward in recent weeks.
Trump has long talked about wanting to hold a rally at the venue dubbed “The World’s Most Famous Arena,” raising the idea in interviews and private conversations.
“It’s the New York, but it’s also, you know, it’s MSG, it’s Madison Square Garden,” Trump recently told FOX News Radio’s “The Brian Kilmeade Show.”
“Guys like you and I, that means a lot, those words. Madison Square Garden, right? Don’t you think so? … It’s a very big stop.”
The venue also has a history in politics, hosting events with Dwight Eisenhower and Franklin D. Roosevelt. In 1962, John F. Kennedy Jr. held a birthday celebration at the stadium where Marilyn Monroe famously sang “Happy Birthday to You, Mr. President.”
Beyond the national spotlight and the appeal of appearing on one of the world’s most famous stages, Republicans say the rally will also help down-ballot candidates.
“Madison Square Garden is the center of the universe,“ said Trump campaign senior adviser Jason Miller, noting the venue’s storied history hosting events including the 1971 “Fight of the Century.” The rally intends to showcase “the historic political movement that President Trump has built in the final days of the campaign,” the Trump campaign said.
Along with trying to energize his base, Trump’s campaign has been trying to court the few remaining undecided voters, many of whom don’t get their news from traditional outlets.
To reach them, Trump has spent hours appearing on popular podcasts, most recently on “The Joe Rogan Experience.” And his campaign has worked to create viral moments such as his visit last weekend to a McDonald’s restaurant. Video of the stop posted by his campaign has been viewed more than 40 million times on TikTok alone.
“He’s not just going to be speaking to the attendees inside Madison Square Garden. There will be people tuning in from battleground states all across the country,” said former U.S. Rep. Lee Zeldin, a New York Republican and ally of the former president.
A roster of big names delivered speeches before Trump took the stage: Tesla CEO Elon Musk, Tucker Carlson, Ultimate Fighting Championship CEO Dana White, “Dr. Phil” McGraw, former Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., former Democratic Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), radio host Sid Rosenberg, and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
The former president’s family members also took turns on stage, including his sons Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr., his wife, Melania Trump, and his daughter-in-law Lara Trump.
Harris last week also traveled to a non-battleground state for a major event in Houston where she appeared with musician Beyoncé to speak about abortion. A campaign official said that the crowd size at the Houston event reached 30,000, making it the campaign’s largest event to date.
Harris will deliver her own closing argument Tuesday from the Ellipse in Washington.
Coming Back to New York
Trump, who rose to fame in New York, saw former allies in the Democrat-dominant city turn against him after he entered presidential politics as a Republican and won the presidency in 2016. After an unsuccessful reelection bid in 2020, Trump is now making his third run while facing prosecutions, court challenges to his candidacy, and a pair of assassination attempts. People in the city have protested for him and against him.
In a similar vein, as Robinson and other early-arriving Trump supporters sat outside Madison Square Garden on Saturday night, some passersby heckled them. Others shouted encouragement, such as “Trump 2024!”
Waiting in line alongside Robinson was Janet Bruno, 59, of Harrison, New York.
Wearing a “New York for Trump” hat, Bruno said she sees Trump appealing to a more diverse group of people now. She sees people of different skin colors and ethnicities who are now being drawn to the Republicans under Trump’s leadership. She said they see the GOP supports free speech, secure borders, a stronger economy, and peace through strength.
Notably, several Muslim leaders in Michigan recently announced endorsements of Trump.
Debra Lea said she came down from the Upper West Side to attend the rally.
“I’ve said before that if you don’t campaign in the blue states, they will all stay blue. It’s up to us to turn them red,” Lea said.
Eduardo Lagucca and his wife and two daughters came from a small town outside Buenos Aires to show their support for Trump.
He said “The United States and Argentina are two different galaxies,” but he supports Argentine President Javier Milei and sees many of the issues in the U.S. election as similar to those facing Argentina, which has struggled with runaway inflation.
Nick Iarossi, 48, said he came from Florida to show support for Trump.
“Even though it’s a blue-performing state and city, there is a lot of support for President Trump here,” Iarossi said.
Debbie Haber, from Long Island, said she “felt great” about the rally. “As for his strategy, politically I think he’d be better off in a swing state, but there will be big news coverage to say that he came here,” she commented.
Longshot to Win New York
Trump has repeatedly stated that he is making “a big play” for his home state.
New York has not voted for a Republican presidential candidate in 40 years, but that hasn’t stopped Trump from saying he believes he can win.
“We think there’s a chance,” he said on “The Brian Kilmeade Show” earlier this week, pointing to frustrations over an influx of illegal immigrants to the city and concerns over crime.
The New York City rally represents a continuation of Trump’s recent pushes into Democrat-held territories, including New Jersey and California, which could help boost not only his popular-vote totals but also shore up support for down-ballot Republicans.
Harris has attracted significant financial support in New York. She raised $27 million at a New York fundraiser in September—one of the largest single-day hauls of the 2024 campaign.
The vice president has not enjoyed as much support from New Yorkers as Biden did, according to recent polling. While Biden beat Trump in New York by almost 30 percentage points in 2020, Harris was leading Trump by less than half that margin, about 14 percent, according to FiveThirtyEight.com.
Jason Meister, a Trump advisory board member who works in New York, said the anticipated size of the rally and the broader spectrum of supporters that Trump is drawing are evidence that “we are currently witnessing a once-in-a-lifetime, generational political realignment.”
Meister, 42, said, “If there ever was a moment in my lifetime that New York was in play, it’s now.”
Long Line
The intersection at 33rd St. and 8th Avenue had the air of a street festival as supporters of Trump from around the nation and many foreign countries waited for the Madison Square Garden rally to begin. Trump t-shirts, signs, hats, and posters sold briskly. Every few minutes an officer yelled for the crowds to part so a vehicle could make a right turn onto 33rd.
At a protest on 8th Avenue, a sign read “Trump Should Be in Prison” and demonstrators chanted an expletive-laden slogan. But in general, the atmosphere is friendly and festive.
Ama Nwaifejokwu, 50, came from the Bronx and said she used to be a Democrat. She said she supports Trump because she opposes vaccine mandates. She is one of the teachers who was fired because of New York City’s vaccine mandates. She said she is fearful of what Harris may do.
Laura Cachell, 41, from Long Island, likes that Trump has included Democrats like Kennedy. She doesn’t believe that the race is neck and neck.
Michael Cytowicz, 54, came from Long Island. He thinks it’s important for Trump to be reelected so the country can get back to a functioning economy.
Michael Washburn, Juliette Fairley, and The Associated Press contributed to this report.