For Both Parties, Trump Seen as Key in Senate Races

The upcoming midterm races have captured national attention as both parties look to prove that voters are coming out to support their agenda and send a message to President Trump—in Democrats’ case, a stern one. Not surprisingly, then, both parties say that the president is an asset in their efforts to hold and gain seats, and that a visit from him to their states will drive their respective voters to the polls.

In Senate races, Republicans hope the strong economy and other policy achievements since the president took office will enable them to flip a handful of the 26 Democratic seats up for election this cycle and boost their narrow majority. Democrats hope Trump’s net-negative approval rating, combined with the history of challenging races in the midterms for the party in power, will help them not only hold their seats but also flip enough of the nine Republican-held ones up this cycle to gain control of the chamber.

Former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski said last week that the president’s main focus in the midterms will be on the Senate side and he emphasized that the president’s influence will be key for GOP candidates. “I think what you're going to find is that support for Donald Trump is not just going to carry you in the primary but is going to carry over to the general election in those Senate races, and I think the Senate is going to become more Republican” as a result, Lewandowski told reporters at a breakfast event in Washington hosted by the Christian Science Monitor.

In deep-red states such as North Dakota and Indiana — where Democratic incumbents are up for re-election — Republicans are hoping this is the case. In the Hoosier State, even Democratic Sen. Joe Donnelly is playing to Trump’s agenda. He appeared in a television ad last week driving an RV and touting his support for the president’s controversial immigration agenda. “I voted for and supported President Trump’s immigration bill, including the funding for the border wall,” Donnelly says in the ad.

In a state that went for Trump by 19 percentage points in 2016, both parties’ candidates are appealing to fans of the president’s agenda and style of politicking. Republican nominee Mike Braun (pictured) has tried to push his connection to the president after a bruising primary fight with Reps. Todd Rokita and Luke Messer -- who also pitched themselves as Trump candidates. Republicans in the state say it’s essential that the president talk to his voters on Braun’s behalf.