Trump to kick off final campaign sprint at Madison Square Garden

Former President Trump is kicking off his final campaign blitz ahead of Election Day with a Sunday rally at Madison Square Garden, trotting out big-name guest stars at the New York City venue known as “The World’s Most Famous Arena.”

The event is expected to draw thousands to the center of deep-blue Manhattan. The Trump campaign announced a slew of prominent Republicans would join the former president for the rally. Those scheduled to make an appearance include Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), who is Trump’s running mate, Donald Trump Jr., billionaire Elon Musk and former Fox News host Tucker Carlson.

Lawmakers scheduled to attend and give remarks include Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) and Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.). 

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., senior Trump adviser Stephen Miller and Brooke Rollins, who previously served as Trump's head of the domestic policy council and may be in line for a top job in a future Trump White House, will also speak.

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, a Trump ally who has been at the center of controversy and legal fights since he spread claims that the 2020 election was fraudulent, is also slated to deliver remarks, according to the campaign.

Trump’s rally in New York City could be a boon to House Republicans locked in competitive races in neighboring districts, and some have speculated it’s a play for the popular vote at a time when polls have shown Trump practically deadlocked with Harris nationally.

One source close to the campaign said the event was not a play for New York state or the popular vote as much as it was about generating significant earned media entering the final week of the race.

Doug Heye, a former spokesperson for the Republican National Committee, said the rally was likely something on Trump’s personal bucket list that he wanted to do, regardless of the political calculations. Trump is a New York City native.

“For every campaign, you find yourself doing something like this because it’s an itch the candidate wants to scratch,” Heye said. “It may not make the most political sense, but the candidate really wants to do it.”

Trump will rally with supporters in New York on Sunday before heading to Atlanta on Monday, Pennsylvania on Tuesday, Wisconsin on Wednesday and Nevada on Thursday, then returning to Wisconsin on Friday.

The source close to the campaign said Trump’s closing message will be to make the case that Vice President Harris “broke” the economy, the border and stability on the global stage, and that Trump can “fix it.” The former president debuted a similar line at a rally this week.

Polls have shown an extremely close race with early voting underway and Election Day closing in. A Decision Desk HQ/The Hill average of polls show Trump and Harris within 1 percentage point of each other in all seven battleground states expected to decide the presidency.

While Trump spends Sunday evening in New York City, Harris will spend the day campaigning in Philadelphia.