Trump heads to Nebraska as Republicans defend red-state Senate seat

US President Donald Trump will ​visit Nebraska on Monday to rally ​Republicans and promote his economic record, taking ‌his ​message of new investment and manufacturing to a state where farmers and truckers face sharply higher diesel prices and voters worry about inflation.

His ‌stop in the city of Grand Island is part of Trump's 32-day sprint to the November 3 midterm elections, a campaign in which he is spending considerable time in Republican strongholds. Trump has urged Republicans ‌to “pretend” he is on the ballot, arguing that voters should view the midterms as a referendum ‌on his administration and economic record. His party is trying to persuade voters that investment, manufacturing and economic growth under Trump outweigh the pain of higher prices stemming from the unpopular US-Israeli war on Iran.

Republicans confront a difficult national polling environment. ⁠A Reuters/Ipsos ​poll last month found ⁠Trump's approval rating had fallen to a career-low 32%, while approval among Republicans fell to 73% from 82% a week ⁠earlier. Reuters polling and analysis have also found Republicans' opponents competitive in a number of states Trump won ​by double digits in 2024, including Nebraska. Trump carried Nebraska by more than 20 percentage points ⁠in 2024, but public polling consistently shows a competitive contest between Republican Senator Pete Ricketts and independent Dan Osborn.

He started his ⁠campaign ​swing last week with stops in Texas, Oklahoma, Alabama and Ohio, reflecting his goal of energizing voters in Republican-friendly states while making himself the central messenger for a party facing concerns ⁠about his political standing. The president spent part of the weekend pushing to end the twice-yearly clock change, saying ⁠farmers support permanent daylight ⁠saving time because it would give them more sunlight later in the day. He even publicly shared Republican Senator Tom Cotton's cellphone number as the ‌two sparred ‌over the issue.

(Reporting By Jarrett Renshaw; Editing by ​Sergio Non and Thomas Derpinghaus)