Republican midterm convention provides Vance center stage moment as party faces midterm risks
DALLAS (AP) — Republicans opened the second and final day of their midterm convention in Dallas on Thursday knowing that history is not on their side this election season, but counting on President Donald Trump to propel voters to protect their House and Senate majorities.
They're also setting the stage for what could come next in a post-Trump era, as Vice President JD Vance takes the primetime speaking slot just ahead of the president and following a tribute to Charlie Kirk, the conservative leader who was assassinated one year ago. Vance has not said whether he will run for the White House, and Trump has yet to name an heir apparent.
With Republican control of Congress at risk this November and the next presidential election two years away, voters are still assessing their options.
“We’ve got a deep bench,” said Bruce Johnston, 62, who drove 29 hours with his son from Delaware to be in Dallas. “I mean you’ve got a lot of good candidates. I’d pick any of those for the primary. And we’ll get a good one.”
His son, Anthony, 33, said he believes Vance is being groomed as Trump's successor.
“No one’s Trump,” he said. “But I like him a lot.”
More immediately, however, Republicans face a potential reckoning this fall.
They are struggling to bolster enthusiasm for congressional GOP candidates and laboring to overcome voters’ concerns about the economy and the war with Iran. While many Republicans skipped the confab at American Airlines Center, others still see solidarity with Trump as their best shot at winning, despite the president’s low approval rating.
They spent the first night denouncing Democrats as extremists and Trump capped Wednesday by making the outlandish promise of $5,000 to each American adult if his party wins. Such a proposal could cost more than $1 trillion and was roundly panned by budget experts — and even some Republicans in the president's party.
“The midterms are not supposed to be won by the sitting president,” Trump acknowledged during a lengthy primetime speech.
But he framed the election as a referendum and encouraged voters to cast their ballots as if they were voting for him: “Pretend I’m on the ballot.”
House Democrats, in Texas for a second day of counterprogramming, blasted the Republicans’ convention as an opulent spectacle for an out-of-touch president.
“As Donald Trump and JD Vance party away for two days, the average American family can’t afford the groceries,” said Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif. “Donald Trump does not care about the average American family or about affordability.”
Protesters chanting “say it loud, say it clear, Donald Trump’s not welcome here” marched down streets, but were stopped by police from getting too close to the site.
Vance’s keynote will be closely watched for any hints about his political aspirations. The vice president has demurred on whether he will run for president in 2028, but he’s widely expected to run.
Chants of “JD, JD, JD” broke out at Vance’s meeting with delegates from presidential battleground states Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin and his home state of Ohio, according to one attendee.
The vice president, who also serves as the Republican National Committee’s finance chair, raised $2 million for the party earlier Thursday at a fundraiser in Dallas, according to a person familiar with the event who was not authorized to discuss it publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
The second night of the convention showcased some of the most electorally endangered Republicans in Congress and those challenging Democrats in tough races, as well as another potential presidential hopeful: Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, who railed against liberal Democrats.
“We must stand and defeat the communists,” Cruz thundered to cheers. “We must stay America.”
Coming on the eve of the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, the evening marked that moment, as the crowd waved American flag placards. It also produced a video tribute to Kirk, who co-founded the conservative group Turning Point USA and was assassinated on this day last year at an event in Utah.
“His voice has only grown louder,” said Lucas Miles, a pastor and vice president at Turning Point. “Charlie is gone, but the mission lives on.”
The night's themes delved into what House Speaker Mike Johnson calls the “Contrast for America,” as Republicans showcased what they call their “Big Beautiful Bill” of tax breaks and spending cuts, and warned of a bleak future if Democrats take control.
The campaign slogan is a throwback to another Republican leader, Newt Gingrich, offered a Contract with America. This time, rather than presenting a detailed list of priorities, Republicans are drawing a contrast with the Democrats, who they contend are too far left and would focus on investigating the Trump administration.
Republicans have been quick to portray all Democrats as in line with their most liberal candidates, particularly a new generation, some backed by the Democratic Socialists of America.
"It truly is a contrast between common sense and crazy," Johnson said. "We cannot and we will not allow them to take the majority in Congress."
With the Republican majorities in the House and Senate both at risk this fall, the president’s agenda for his final two years in office is also at stake. The margins in Congress are expected to be narrow, with a few seats in a shrunken map of competitive races determining the outcome.
Presidents past have acknowledged their midterm losses — Barack Obama called his 2010 setbacks a “shellacking,” George W. Bush labeled his a “thumping.”
But Trump often refuses to accept defeat, including his false claims that he, rather than Joe Biden, won the 2020 election. One of the many people he pardoned for their actions in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, former Oath Keepers leader Stewart Rhodes, appeared at the convention.
Trump on Wednesday predicted that “the great American majority is going to stand up and continue to Make America Great Again. And we will make our voices heard, perhaps like never before.”
___
Mascaro reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Jill Colvin, Thomas Beaumont and Jamie Stengle in Dallas, Will Weissert, Steven Sloan, and Aamer Madhani in Washington, JJ Cooper in Phoenix, Bill Barrow in Atlanta, Marc Levy in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Hannah Fingerhut in Des Moines, Iowa, and Sarah Rankin in Richmond, Virginia, contributed to this report.
© Copyright The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in this news report may not be published, broadcast or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
