UNIONDALE, New York — It’s been 40 years since a Republican nominee has carried New York state in a presidential election.
You have to go back to President Ronald Reagan, who won the state as part of his landslide re-election victory in 1984.
But that’s not stopping former President Trump from holding a rally Wednesday in his native state, which he has no serious chance of carrying in his election faceoff with Vice President Kamala Harris.
Trump’s rally in Uniondale is in Long Island’s Nassau County, a longtime Republican stronghold in the reliably blue state of New York.
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Former President Trump is set to hold a rally at Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, New York, on Wednesday. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)
And it’s Trump’s second large campaign event this year, after drawing a big crowd in the New York City borough of the Bronx in May.
While there was some chatter of New York potentially being in play as President Biden’s poll numbers started cratering following his disastrous late-June debate performance against Trump, the conversation was fleeting and quickly dissipated when Harris replaced Biden atop the Democrats’ 2024 ticket.
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So why — with less than 50 days to go until Election Day and time becoming a very precious commodity — is Trump holding a campaign rally just outside of New York City?
Former President Trump speaks during a campaign rally in the South Bronx in New York City on May 23. (AP/Yuki Iwamura)
“Quite clearly, New York is the biggest media hub in the country,” Trump campaign spokesman Tim Murtaugh told Fox News.
Murtaugh emphasized that “when [Trump] delivers a message there, it’s piped directly into homes in every market in every battleground state. The most valuable commodity we have is President Trump’s time. And that event is making efficient use of it.”
The rally is Trump’s first since this past weekend’s apparent second failed assassination attempt against the former president.
And a number of people who lined up hours ahead of the rally to see the former president said they were attending to “show support” for Trump.
Supporters of former President Trump line up hours ahead of his rally at Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, New York, on Wednesday. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)
While Trump is extremely unlikely to carry New York in the White House race, the rally may help Republicans down ballot, as they try to hold on to their House of Representatives majority in November’s elections.
Several GOP-controlled House seats in New York state are considered vulnerable this year, including one held by Rep. Anthony D’Esposito of Long Island.
VideoEsposito, in an interview with Fox News’ Bryan Ilenas live on the Fox News Channel, said “it is very clear – perhaps New York is not a battleground state, but what there is – is there’s a battleground right here on Long Island. And when Trump wins on Election Night, he is going to need a House majority and that House majority runs through the Empire State.”
Fox News’ Jennifer Johnson contributed to this report
Paul Steinhauser is a politics reporter based in New Hampshire.
