Every midterm cycle in the Trump era, Republicans run into the same wall. The voters who flood the polls when Donald Trump's name is on the ballot have a habit of sitting things out when it isn't. This year, Trump is asking his supporters to treat November 3 as if he were running again, and early signs suggest it's working.
If it holds, it could decide whether Trump keeps a Republican Congress or spends the rest of his term fending off a Democrat majority bent on tearing him down. We know that a Democrat win would grind his agenda to a halt. On top of that, Democrats would launch a slew of absurd investigations to distract from the fact that they have no actual agenda aside from stopping Trump. And despite their denials right now, it's widely believed that a Democrat majority would inevitably go looking for something to impeach him over.
When it comes to the issue of turning out, Democrats have never had that problem. As far as their voters are concerned, Trump is always on the ballot. That gives them an advantage this year as it did in 2018. So Trump's strategy this year has been to make the election about him, at least for his supporters. And it may actually work.
Former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows believes Trump's ability to drive voters to the polls could prove critical as Republicans fight to protect their congressional majorities in the final weeks of the campaign. He's right. Turning out the vote is what Donald Trump does best, and that's why he's doing the rallies.
Georgia may offer an early look at how this strategy is playing out.
Ahead of Trump's rally there, NBC News spoke with voters who said they knew Republicans who had planned to skip this election entirely. After hearing Trump's call to arms, those same Republicans got fired up and had already voted early.
Trump came to Georgia to boost Rep. Mike Collins (R-Ga.), who is challenging Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.) for his Senate seat. Reporting from the state before the rally, NBC White House correspondent Monica Alba made the case that Trump’s efforts may actually be working.
"The president is here to talk to voters who we know are loyal to him, but he's going to continue to make this case about asking them to pretend he's on the ballot," Alba explained. "And in the conversations I've had here for voters, they say they feel that message is working."
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"They're telling me that their Republican friends who maybe wouldn't have shown up to vote are heeding the president's call, have gone even to vote early," she added.
🚨 Democrats are now admitting that Trump's battleground state rally tour is WORKING in states like Georgia: "There are RECORD-BREAKING early voting numbers here." "In the conversations I've had here for voters, they say they feel that message is working." "They're telling me that they're Republican friends who maybe wouldn't have shown up to vote are heeding the president's call, have gone even to vote early... on pace to break the last midterm record of 4 years ago if this keeps up."
— Andrew Kolvet (@AndrewKolvet) October 16, 2026
Georgia is also posting record-breaking early voting numbers, and if the current pace keeps up, the state will top the midterm record it set four years ago.
So, can it work? Sure.
Will it work? We'll see.
This may be a real preview of the MAGA movement’s staying power after Trump leaves office. Trump’s name may no longer appear on a ballot now, but what will happen in 2028? If Trump can even close the gap in races many already considered lost (like the Senate race in Georgia), it will show that the coalition he built belongs to them now and is ready to defend everything it has fought for.
