Wisconsin, October 7
Former US President Donald Trump said he needs a “mandate” from the American electorate this year as Election Day is just less than a month away, the Hill reported.
At an election rally in Juneau, Wisconsin, Trump said that he needs his supporters from the key battleground state of Wisconsin and the country as a whole to turn out “in record numbers.”
Trump’s rally in Wisconsin was significant as it was held a day after he made a return to Butler, Pennsylvania, where he had faced an assassination attempt on July 13.
Wisconsin is a key swing state in the US, with other prominent ones being, Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Nevada, Minnesota and North Carolina.”If we win Wisconsin, we win the presidency.” Trump spoke during the rally.
In the event that stretched for two hours, Trump raised various issues of concern for the American voters ranging from the response to Hurricane Helene to raking up the issue of only US citizens with valid IDs being allowed to cast votes.
Polls nationwide and in the key swing states have mostly shown Trump and Vice President Harris nearly even with each other and at least within the margin of error if one candidate is slightly ahead.
The current makeup of the federal government is closely divided, and that potentially could continue if the 2024 race is as close as the polls say. Democrats currently have a narrow 51-49 majority in the Senate, while Republicans control the House by just a few seats, the Hill stated.
CNN’s senior data reporter Harry Enten noted that in Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin Kamala Harris continues to lead while in the other swing states such as North Carolina, Arizona, Georgia, it is Donald Trump who is shining. The battleground hence becomes “incredibly tight” with a “slight advantage” to Kamala Harris, according to CNN.
“We need a mandate in the vote, and we’re going to get it,” he added while motivating the voters to come out in large numbers.
Trump reemphasized that he received more votes in 2020 than any sitting president before and argued as he has in the past that several issues that have happened in the past few years would not have happened if he were still president, including Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel and high inflation.
Both Trump and Harris certainly would prefer a clear victory that gives them a mandate and sweeps their party into control of both houses of Congress, allowing them to more easily enact their legislative agenda.
But the country appears likely headed to another close election that could be similar to the current makeup of the government, even if one party wins control of the presidency and Congress, The Hill stated.
