Trump Cancels Saturday Kansas Rally, Will Hold Tele-Rally Instead
The president's Oct. 31 stop in Salina was called off Thursday, days before the Nov. 3 election, as a new poll shows Sen. Roger Marshall trailing in a state Republicans have long carried.
President Donald Trump will not hold a planned rally Saturday in Salina, Kansas. The Kansas Republican Party confirmed the cancellation Thursday.
The rally was scheduled for Oct. 31 at Salina Regional Airport. Doors were set to open at 8:30 a.m., with the president's remarks set for noon in Hangar 509.
The Republican National Committee said the event has been moved to a tele-rally. In a statement, the committee cited popular demand and an incredibly busy campaign schedule leading up to Election Day. The statement did not give a date or time for the tele-rally.
The tele-rally is to support Sen. Roger Marshall, state Sen. Ty Masterson and Kansas Republicans ahead of the Nov. 3 election, according to the committee.
Salina Airport Authority Executive Director Pieter Miller said the airport's latest information was that the rally was canceled due to scheduling conflicts.
Kansas GOP spokesperson Laura Francis said Trump is shifting from in-person rallies, including Saturday's event in Salina, to tele-town halls that allow him to reach more voters across the nation. A GOP source familiar with the situation said demand for the president from candidates has been high, and the campaign is adjusting to a tele-rally to maximize his reach in battleground states.
Trump offered his own explanation Thursday at Joint Base Andrews. Asked why he was not going to Kansas, he said the race did not require it.
"I'm not going to Kansas because he's doing very well," Trump said. "I'm going to do a tele-rally. Tomorrow, I'm doing Florida."
When a Reuters reporter asked whether he canceled the trip because he was "sick of traveling," Trump replied, "Oh you're sick to ask that question. You are sick," USA Today reported. Asked separately about travel fatigue, he said, "You've been following me for two weeks. I feel perfect."
The Salina stop would have been Trump's second trip to Kansas for Marshall in this campaign. Trump rallied in Park City on Oct. 19. Vice President JD Vance rallied in Topeka on Oct. 26 and in Olathe on Sept. 14.
The cancellation comes as a CNN poll released Thursday showed Marshall trailing Democratic challenger Adam Hamilton, 49% to 45%. A Democrat has not won a U.S. Senate race in Kansas since 1932. Trump carried Kansas in the 2024 election by 16 points.
The Salina visit was also intended to boost the governor's race, in which Masterson, the Republican candidate, faces Democrat Cindy Holscher for the open governor's office, Scripps News reported.
Trump is scheduled to hold a rally in Daytona, Florida, on Friday, USA Today reported. Saline County restored its original Saturday advance voting hours, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., after earlier shortening them because of the planned rally.
