By Steve Holland, Bo Erickson and Nandita Bose
WASHINGTON, Oct 12 (Reuters) - With little more than three weeks to go until Election Day, President Donald Trump will make a new campaign swing this week through normally friendly territory where some Republican candidates are facing tough fights.
Trump's latest foray will take him to Ohio, Alaska, Arizona and Montana, all states he won in 2024, as polls show Republicans at risk as they try to hang on to control of the US Congress for the president's
last two years in office.
Trump, facing political headwinds due to high gasoline prices and his war in Iran, has largely stuck to friendly turf during his 32-day sprint to the November 3 elections.
By the end of the week, Trump will have campaigned in 11 states in two weeks. This includes two stops each in Texas and Ohio, as well as a Tuesday rally in Alaska. These are all states where Republicans are hoping to hang on in competitive US Senate races.
Trump told reporters on Saturday night after a trip to Clarksville, Tennessee, that he was stopping in friendly areas to thank voters in states that backed him in the past. But he said he would also campaign in more contested areas.
"I want to give some recognition to places that have just backed me automatically, like Tennessee, and I'll be going to Ohio, which backed me, but we have very close races," he said.
In Youngstown, Ohio, on Monday, Trump will rally for Republican Senator Jon Husted, who is locked in a close race with Democrat Sherrod Brown. In Alaska, Republican Senator Dan Sullivan is in a close contest with Democrat Mary Peltola.
Larry Sabato, director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia, said Trump's travel appears to have strategic objectives.
"His staff is putting him in places where he's likely to be able to draw a friendly crowd to the rally," Sabato said. "And these candidates he's campaigning for might well win."
Trump's presence in competitive areas is also energizing his opponents. “This is my very first protest,” 59-year-old Democratic voter Marilyn Makiewicz said in an interview outside Trump’s recent rally in Vandalia, Ohio. “I think he is doing these rallies because he's worried about the election.”
White House officials said the stops on Trump's campaign swings are geared toward drawing the president's most loyal supporters to get out and vote. Trump has repeatedly urged his followers to "pretend I'm on the ballot."
"Some of them may not show up for a candidate unless Trump gives them a reason,” one of the officials said of Trump's base of supporters.
(Reporting By Steve Holland, Bo Erickson and Nandita Bose; Editing by Paul Thomasch and Bill Berkrot)
