Former President Donald Trump and his running mate, Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance, are planning a trip to Minnesota, a state that hasn’t voted for a Republican presidential candidate in 52 years. Trump and Vance will be making a stop in St. Cloud, Minnesota, on Saturday, according to an announcement by the campaign. This move comes as the Trump campaign seeks to expand their reach beyond traditional swing states, with Minnesota and Virginia being of particular interest.
Trump’s pollster, John McLaughlin, believes that the state is in play and that Vance, with his Midwestern roots, could sway voters in the region. While Trump narrowly lost Minnesota to Hillary Clinton in 2016, he lost by a wider margin to Joe Biden in 2020. However, recent polls suggest that the state could be competitive once again.
A June poll conducted by the Star Tribune, MPR News, and KARE 11 showed Trump trailing Biden by just 4%. The Real Clear Politics polling average shows Trump trailing by only 3 points. One poll even shows Trump and Biden tied in the typically blue state.
The Trump campaign has become increasingly optimistic about their chances in 2024, aiming to expand the map beyond the heavily contested swing states of Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.
Trump’s recent success in Virginia, where he now holds a narrow lead, further fuels the campaign’s optimism. The campaign has opened eight new field offices in Minnesota and has highlighted Vance’s Midwestern roots as a key factor in attracting voters in the state.
This trip to Minnesota comes amid a rapidly changing political landscape. Biden announced his withdrawal from the race on Sunday, endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris as his replacement. Harris’s candidacy has energized Democrats, and the Trump campaign will be looking to gain an advantage by targeting Minnesota before Harris has a chance to build momentum in the state.
While polling data for a Trump vs. Harris matchup in battleground states is limited, the Trump campaign hopes that this early visit to Minnesota will set the stage for a successful campaign in the state.
