Republicans Open First-Ever Midterm Convention in Dallas

Republicans opened a two-day convention Wednesday, Sept. 9, in Dallas, the first midterm party convention ever held by either major party, according to NPR. President Donald Trump is scheduled to deliver the keynote address Wednesday night, tentatively set for 9 p.m. ET, and will return Thursday evening at the American Airlines Center to close the event after Vice President JD Vance gives the second night's keynote, according to a speakers list shared first with Fox News Digital.

The gathering comes less than two months before the Nov. 3 election, with early voting weeks away. Republican National Committee Chair Joe Gruters told Fox News Digital the party's strategy is straightforward: "We are putting the president on the ballot." Party officials, who have taken to calling the event a "Trumpapalooza," plan to promote Trump's agenda, cast Democrats as dangerous, and press the president's most loyal supporters to focus on the midterms, USA Today reported.

Several Trump administration officials and Republican midterm candidates are slated to speak at the arena in downtown Dallas, though USA Today reported that some candidates in close races decided to skip the convention. Trump's primetime speeches will also compete for television viewership with the opening games of the NFL regular season.

The context

Democrats and Republicans have traditionally held large nominating conventions only in presidential election years. Trump floated the idea of a midterm gathering a year ago as a way to showcase the policy achievements he and congressional Republicans have produced since he returned to the White House, Fox News reported.

The party faces what Fox News described as a low-propensity problem: MAGA voters who do not reliably turn out when Trump's name is not on the ballot. Gruters told Fox News Digital that Trump is "the best showman in politics" and the party's best vote-getter for those voters, noting he has delivered three times before.

The convention also arrives as Democratic prospects have improved. The Polymarket betting market as of Sept. 8 gave Democrats an 87% chance of winning the House and a 53% chance of taking the Senate, up from 28% a year earlier, according to USA Today. Decision Desk HQ, which had called the Senate decisively for Republicans for much of the past year, on Sept. 8 put Democrats' Senate chances at 50%.

Why it matters

Republicans are defending slim majorities in both the House and Senate, and the November results will determine control of Congress for the remainder of Trump's term. Polling shows the party trailing in most top Senate battlegrounds: Democrats lead in eight of the nine most competitive races in the Real Clear Politics average, including North Carolina by 8 points and Georgia by 7.5, with Republicans ahead only in Iowa. Republican strategist Charlie Black told USA Today the party is having a bad year because of voter unhappiness over the economy and the war, making the convention an attempt to change the trajectory.

What’s next

Trump speaks Wednesday night and again Thursday to close the convention, following Vance's Thursday keynote. Early voting begins within weeks, and the election is Nov. 3. Open questions include whether the event moves polling in battleground Senate races where Democrats currently lead, and whether it draws viewers against the NFL season openers airing the same nights. Watch whether candidates in tight races who skipped the convention change their posture toward Trump as the campaign closes.