President Donald Trump and former President Barack Obama took competing messages to Ohio and Georgia on Wednesday, in the final week before the November 3 midterm elections that will decide control of Congress, according to Reuters.
Trump appeared with Senator Jon Husted of Ohio, who faces Democratic former Senator Sherrod Brown in one of the most competitive Senate contests, according to Reuters. Obama appeared with Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff of Georgia, who faces Republican Representative Mike Collins. Nonpartisan analysts see Ossoff in a strong position, though Georgia’s three most recent Senate matchups went to runoffs.
Two rallies, two arguments
Trump urged Republican supporters to vote and predicted victory for his party, while Obama attacked the administration over the Iran war, high costs and White House renovations. At a Georgia rally, Obama mocked Trump’s focus on remodelling the White House, saying, “We are fighting wars and inflation is out of control, yet the president is literally engaging in craft activities,” according to reports of the rally.
Trump responded at his Chillicothe, Ohio rally, defending the renovations and saying, “I paid for it myself. I fixed it, and now it looks more beautiful and is in better condition,” according to Aju Press. He also criticised Obama, saying he did not understand cleanliness or what broken stones and sidewalks are.
The stakes and the early vote
Americans have been voting for weeks, with more than 39 million ballots already cast, according to the University of Florida’s Election Lab. A total of 45.9 million Americans voted early in the last midterms in 2022. All 435 House seats and 35 Senate seats are on the ballot, alongside gubernatorial elections in 36 states.
The final week is playing out with Trump’s public approval rating near a record low, according to Reuters, with Americans increasingly sour on the high cost of living and the Iran war, threatening Republican majorities in both chambers.
