President Donald Trump is dropping his planned Waco rally and heading to the Texas coast instead, with a Corpus Christi event now set for next Tuesday as Republicans scramble to shore up support ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections. Doors are expected to open at 10:30 a.m., with the program starting at 12:30 p.m. and remarks beginning at 2 p.m., though organizers have not said where in the city the rally will actually take place.
The schedule shuffle was confirmed by the Republican National Committee on Thursday, according to Audacy, which reported that Trump had canceled his Waco appearance and would instead hold the event in Corpus Christi the same day. His separate stop in Lubbock remains on the calendar. As the San Antonio Express-News notes, the move comes as Republicans fight to maintain their political foothold in Texas with Election Day fast approaching.
Anyone hoping to attend has to RSVP through the event website, and sign-ups are capped at four tickets per person, according to KSAT. As of reporting published this week, a location still had not been announced, and it remains unclear who else might join Trump on stage. A separate report from WOAI states that Vice President J.D. Vance is also headed to Corpus Christi on Oct. 27 as part of the last-minute midterm push.
A Follow-Up to the San Antonio Rally
This isn't Trump's first South Texas-area stop this cycle. He spoke at Freeman Coliseum in San Antonio on Oct. 7, campaigning for Republican Senate candidate Ken Paxton and congressional candidate Carlos De La Cruz, according to the Express-News and San Antonio Report. The Bexar County Sheriff's Office said authorities escorted 18 people from that venue for disruptive behavior.
The Corpus Christi trip fits into a broader pattern. Trump's October travel has included two stops in Ohio, two in Texas, plus Oklahoma and Tennessee, according to NPR, which reports he has pledged to spend the final month before the midterms campaigning for roughly 30 Republican candidates nationwide. NPR notes his team has been picking locations where he can activate the Republican base in places he's performed well in before.
Senate Race Remains a Dead Heat
The timing underscores just how competitive the Texas Senate race between Paxton and Democrat James Talarico has become. A University of Texas/Texas Politics Project poll conducted Sept. 25 through Oct. 5 found what researchers called historic levels of competition statewide, with Texas Politics Project reporting Talarico ahead of Paxton 50% to 47% among likely voters, within the margin of error. That same poll found a partisan enthusiasm gap favoring Democrats, even as 89% of voters who recalled backing Trump in 2024 said they'd vote for Paxton.
Other recent surveys tell a similarly tight story. A Fox News poll released Oct. 21 showed Talarico and Paxton tied at 49% each, per USA Today, while a University of Houston Hobby poll from Oct. 18 had Talarico up 48% to 46%.
Early Voting Already Breaking Records
Texans have been voting since Oct. 19, with early voting continuing through Oct. 30 ahead of Election Day on Nov. 3, according to the Houston Chronicle. South Texas has gained electoral importance amid Republican inroads among Latino voters in 2024.
With the rally location still unconfirmed and the Senate race locked in a statistical tie across multiple polls, the stakes of Trump's Corpus Christi visit are clear even if the logistics aren't. Republicans are concerned about turnout in the final stretch before Nov. 3, in a state that, not long ago, wasn't considered competitive at all.
