Trump and Obama campaign in Ohio and Georgia as midterm voting approaches
Trump backed Republican candidates in Ohio while Obama rallied for Democrats in Georgia on October 28, putting two Senate contests in focus before the November 3 election.
President Donald Trump campaigned in Chillicothe, Ohio, and former President Barack Obama rallied in Morrow, Georgia, on October 28, putting two Senate contests in focus in the closing week before the November 3 US midterm elections, Reuters reported. Neither man is on the ballot, but both appealed to voters as early voting continued.
Trump appeared with Republican Senator Jon Husted, who faces a challenge from former Democratic senator Sherrod Brown, according to Reuters. CBS News reported that Trump's Ohio visit also sought to boost gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy. Trump urged supporters to ‘pretend I'm on the ballot,’ CBS reported, tying the party's campaign to his presidency.
Trump's Ohio rally and the Husted–Brown race
At the Chillicothe rally, Trump attacked Brown over immigration policies that he said had overwhelmed Springfield, Ohio, Reuters reported. Trump said the town ‘went to hell.’ Reuters noted that Trump had spread false claims during the 2024 presidential campaign that Haitian immigrants in Springfield were eating cats and dogs; local officials repeatedly said those allegations were untrue.
The Ohio appearance added Trump's campaign message to the closing-week picture alongside Obama's Georgia rally. The two events placed the former and current presidents on opposite sides of Senate races whose voters will choose between the parties' candidates on November 3.
Obama's Georgia appeal for Ossoff and Bottoms
In Morrow, near Atlanta, Obama urged voters to support Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff, who faces Republican Representative Mike Collins, Reuters reported. The Guardian reported that Obama also campaigned for gubernatorial candidate Keisha Lance Bottoms and other Democrats further down the ballot. It estimated that 3,500 to 4,000 people attended the rally at the Discovery Center of Clayton County.
Obama criticized Trump's tariffs and the war in Iran and invoked Martin Luther King Jr. while arguing that America's values were at stake, according to Reuters. The Guardian reported that he also turned a discussion of the Cheesecake Factory into an argument about affordability and accused the president of selling favors. Those accusations were part of Obama's campaign speech.
Obama's appearance for Ossoff and Bottoms was the focus of earlier NewsJaws coverage. The paired October 28 appearances show Trump campaigning for Ohio Republicans while Obama made his case for Georgia Democrats, with Election Day set for Tuesday, November 3, according to CBS News.
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Sources and context
- Trump and Obama trade barbs in closing week of US midterm electionReuters, carried by The Straits Times
- ‘They mobilized a whole government response to that joke’: Obama laughs off Trump attacks in rally for OssoffThe Guardian
- Live Updates: Obama and Trump hold dueling rallies as 2026 midterm campaigns make final pre-Election Day pitchCBS News
AI-assisted article checked against the listed sources. NewsJaws did not conduct interviews or attend the reported events.