“The rallies are back on. President Trump loves his supporters, and in addition to nearly 20 tele-rallies, he will hold back-to-back rallies in Kansas and Iowa on Sunday,” a party source familiar with Trump’s weekend planning said.

Trump had originally been scheduled to campaign in Salina, Kansas, on Saturday and Dubuque, Iowa, on Sunday, but both appearances were scrapped on Thursday, with Republicans saying he would instead concentrate on telephone rallies. The sudden changes raised questions about the 80-year-old president’s health and stamina, prompting an angry response when a reporter asked whether he was feeling well.

“I feel perfect,” Trump snapped, saying he no longer needed to visit Kansas because Republican Senator Roger Marshall was “doing very well.” Marshall faces an unexpectedly competitive challenge from Democrat Adam Hamilton in Kansas, which has not elected a Democratic senator since 1932.

In Iowa, Republican congresswoman Ashley Hinson is fighting a close race against Democrat Josh Turek. Both states voted comfortably for Trump in 2024 but have emerged as battlegrounds in the fight for control of the Senate.

Republicans are defending their 53-47 majority in the Senate in Tuesday’s elections, while Democrats are seeking to capture at least one chamber of Congress and curb Trump’s legislative agenda during his final two years in office.

Political strategist Mike Fahey, a veteran of multiple election campaigns, told AFP Trump’s about-face was likely the result of the questions over his energy levels. “My suspicion is that Trump didn’t particularly like that narrative, and putting the events back on the calendar was the fastest way to kill it,” he said.

“There’s also a legitimate campaign strategy argument here… A phone call doesn’t generate the same local headlines, television coverage, or excitement as Air Force One landing in your state three days before an election.”

© 2024 AFP

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Here are the key potential flashpoints:

– **Before election day**

Voter eligibility: The Justice Department has sued 30 states and the District of Columbia to obtain their voter registration lists, saying it needs them to find non-citizens. It has lost more than two dozen of those cases. It has also demanded that ballots be set aside from about 20,000 people in California and more than 400 in Washington state whom it suspects are non-citizens. A federal judge rejected the California request on Wednesday, saying it would wreak havoc on an election already underway. Washington state has also refused the demand. Studies have repeatedly found non-citizen voting to be exceptionally rare.

Pressure on officials: The Justice Department has warned election officials in every state that they could face prosecution if they knowingly allow non-citizens to vote. And Trump on Monday offered $1 million for information leading to a voter fraud conviction, without giving details.

– **At polling stations**

Federal monitors: The Justice Department plans to send around 1,000 election monitors to all 50 states — its largest deployment ever. Monitoring is a decades-old practice, but Democrats and voting rights groups fear monitors could intimidate voters. The department says they will be unarmed, barred from interfering with voting and drawn from neither the FBI nor Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Immigration agents and troops: Advocates fear ICE operations near polling stations could deter voters in immigrant communities. The administration says it is not planning operations targeting polling places, although Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin has said ICE agents could serve warrants there. Trump has declined to rule out declaring a national emergency or invoking the Insurrection Act, which allows the president to deploy troops at home. A Civil War-era law bars troops and armed federal agents from polling places, and legal experts say an emergency declaration would not give the president power over elections.

– **Counting the votes**

Seizing election materials: Federal agents could seek warrants or subpoenas for ballots, voting machines or records — potentially disrupting the count. In January, the FBI seized ballots and other 2020 election records in Fulton County, Georgia, a focus of Trump’s false claims that he won that year. Election officials warn that similar action during an active count could undermine safeguards tracking how ballots are handled.

Challenging the count: Trump could allege fraud involving mail-in ballots, voting machines or votes counted after election night, fueling demands for recounts or attempts to halt counting. But the US Supreme Court ruled in June that states may count mail ballots postmarked by election day that arrive afterward, and courts can intervene against unlawful disruption.

– **After election day**

Blocking certification: The Justice Department has sued Alaska to delay certification of its Senate race if Republican incumbent Dan Sullivan narrowly loses to Democrat Mary Peltola, citing a second candidate named Dan Sullivan who it says is trying to confuse voters, which he denies. Trump said he ordered the lawsuit. Experts say federal law does not allow the department to block certification, which courts can compel officials to carry out.

Challenging Democratic victories: Trump could pressure state officials to dispute results, as he did after losing the 2020 election. Experts warn unresolved disputes could also delay the seating of newly elected lawmakers in January. But courts have repeatedly upheld states’ authority over elections, and Democrats and voting rights groups have assembled legal teams to fight any interference.

– Frankie TAGGART

© 2024 AFP

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Trump has urged the party to “pretend I’m on the ballot” to maximize turnout despite his poor approval ratings. “With Republicans in a strong position in Kansas and Iowa, previously planned in-person rallies in those states will no longer take place as scheduled,” the RNC statement said. Trump’s final election rally is now set to be in Florida on Friday.

Despite being the oldest elected president in US history, Trump has kept up a grueling schedule of near-daily rallies throughout October to help Republicans in the midterms. Trump slammed a reporter on Thursday when asked if he was canceling Saturday’s planned Kansas rally because he was “sick of traveling.” “You’re sick to ask that question. You are sick,” Trump told the reporter after returning to Washington from a campaign trip to South Carolina. “I feel perfect. You are disgusting. Put yourself in shape, you look like hell.”

© 2024 AFP

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“If they don’t correct this it would be certainly a dishonest election,” Trump told reporters when asked about remarks earlier this week saying he would recognize the results of the US midterms so long as they were “honest.” “It’s very unfair. It’s very confusing and meant to be. It’s a fraud.” Trump said last week that he had ordered a Justice Department lawsuit seeking to prevent certification of Alaska’s election result if the sitting Republican senator loses. But his comments on Thursday were his clearest hint yet that he will challenge any Alaska loss result come what may — and ramped up broader questions about whether he will accept other possible midterm defeats.

Polls show Republicans are on track to lose control of the House of Representatives and possibly the Senate, with voters angered by the cost of living and disapproving of Trump’s war on Iran. The tale of the two Dan Sullivans and the allegations about the Democratic candidate’s conduct have electrified a race that could decide whether the Senate flips or not. Daniel J. Sullivan, a retired teacher from a remote Alaskan fishing community, has said he entered the race of his own volition to challenge Daniel S. Sullivan, the current Republican senator.

Alaska’s Republican Governor Mike Dunleavy also joined the fray, saying the alleged Democratic actions were a bid to “deliberately confuse voters and misdirect their votes.” In a post late Wednesday on X, Dunleavy said he was directing the Department of Public Safety to “investigate whether this scheme violated Alaska’s laws and whether criminal charges or civil action are warranted.”

“Alaskans have a fundamental right to vote for the candidate they actually intend to support,” he said. “Deliberately tricking voters into casting their ballots for someone else strikes at the integrity of our elections.” Trump demanded on Wednesday that Peltola and the man he called the “FAKE Dan Sullivan” be removed from next week’s ballot, and called for Peltola and any other alleged accomplices to be prosecuted.

The New York Times noted that recruiting candidates to split an opponent’s vote — a practice known as ballot stacking — is generally legal and has been used by both parties in Alaska. The newspaper’s investigation did not establish any criminal wrongdoing. Peltola’s former campaign manager Elisa Rios told the Times the candidate was “definitely aware” of the project but was not directly involved. In June, Alaska’s Supreme Court upheld the retired teacher’s right to run, rejecting Republican efforts to remove him from the ballot. The state has asked a federal judge to dismiss the Justice Department’s lawsuit, arguing it has no legal basis.

– Danny KEMP

© 2024 AFP

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“I think the election was a disgrace in Brazil,” Trump told reporters when asked if he accepted incumbent Lula’s victory, as the US leader headed on a midterms campaign trip. “I don’t want to comment on it right now, but I thought the election was a very great embarrassment to the people of Brazil,” Trump added. “I watched the election. I let it be. I was asked not to take sides by the president, the current president. I didn’t take sides, but when I watched what went down in Brazil, it was a disgrace.”

Trump pointed to the reaction of the Brazilian stock market, which dropped after Lula’s victory, adding: “I thought it was a very disgraceful situation for Brazil.” The US leader’s stance appeared to have hardened from as recently as Wednesday, when he said Brazil’s election was “very strange” but added that he “won’t get involved” in Flavio Bolsonaro’s claim to the presidency.

Bolsonaro’s defiance on arrival in Florida on Wednesday signaled continued upheaval for Brazil, where Lula won a dramatic runoff election Sunday. “I am the elected president, and the criminals who stole Brazil’s election are part of a criminal organization that has established a tyranny,” Bolsonaro said in the statement published on his X account, slamming “electoral fraud.” Trump’s administration has strong links to Bolsonaro and his hard-right father Jair Bolsonaro, who is under house arrest in Brazil after attempting to overturn his own electoral loss to Lula in 2022.

The US president’s reaction has meanwhile sparked speculation about how he will react to a possible Republican loss of Congress in tight US midterm elections that take place next week. Trump, 80, has ramped up allegations of election fraud, reviving memories of his baseless refusal to accept his 2020 election defeat and the subsequent attack on the US Capitol by his supporters on January 6, 2021.

Details of how Bolsonaro, accompanied by his wife and daughters, made it to US soil are still emerging. He is under investigation in his home country over alleged corruption and money laundering. With his current parliamentary immunity about to expire, he was ordered to surrender his passports but left anyway, reaching the United States via Argentina and Ecuador. The US Department of Homeland Security — which under Trump has led a major campaign against what it calls an immigrant “invasion” from Latin America — said in a statement that the Bolsonaro family members were inspected and cleared “with applicable immigration laws and procedures.”

Lula, who won Sunday’s election with 51.8 percent of the vote, called Bolsonaro’s departure a “shameful” act.

© 2024 AFP

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They requested a closed-door briefing by November 11 covering the president’s use of AI, security safeguards, and whether outside companies could access sensitive conversations. “If the American President is relying on the policy advice of a Musk-designed, Hitler-friendly chatbot with a predilection for child pornography in order to carry out his official duties, Americans have a right to know,” they wrote. The language alludes to past controversies over Grok generating antisemitic statements and sexualized images of children.

The letter follows reports that Trump spent hours using Grok during a December 2025 Oval Office meeting with Musk, including asking how Venezuelans might react if US forces captured President Nicolas Maduro. Grok reportedly said many would welcome Maduro’s downfall. US forces seized him weeks later, but no evidence has emerged that the chatbot determined the operation. The lawmakers questioned Trump’s reported reliance on a privately controlled chatbot in matters of foreign policy, warning that AI-generated answers could be inaccurate or manipulated.

They cited reporting about an AI-assisted intelligence error involving a Chinese vessel, and allegations that excessive reliance on artificial intelligence contributed to a US strike on an Iranian school that killed more than 100 children. “If the United States military killed dozens of innocent schoolchildren based on the faulty advice of an AI chatbot, we have a right to know that too,” the lawmakers added. Neither episode establishes a role for Grok in those military decisions.

They also sought details about restrictions on submitting classified information, the handling of chatbot records, and any third-party access to them. Their request extends to other chatbots, including OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Anthropic’s Claude, and Google’s Gemini. A White House official told AFP the administration preserves all required records in accordance with the law.

© 2024 AFP

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Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said last month that the United States has slashed the number of its generals and admirals by 20 percent, in a move he said is aimed at “accountability.” He suggested the cuts targeted officers who failed to get on board with his efforts to ensure the military is focused on war-fighting rather than the “woke” policies of previous administrations, describing the reductions as an “accomplishment.” No reason was given for Sylvia’s departure, and no replacement has been named, The Atlantic said. AFP has contacted the Pentagon for comment.

The reported sacking comes as Trump is widely considered to be weighing fresh strikes against Iran after the US midterm elections on November 3. “We may do another little Epic Fury,” Trump said last week, referring to US-Israeli attacks on Tehran in February that triggered the war. He did not give any indication on timing. Neither the United States nor Iran has engaged in major attacks on land-based targets since early September, settling instead into a pattern of strikes on commercial ships.

Sylvia’s previous roles included leading the 101st Airborne Division — the US army’s air assault division — and heading a unit in Iraq.

© 2024 AFP

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“It has just been determined that the Democrats in Alaska illegally searched for, and recruited, a man named Dan Sullivan,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. He accused Democrats of committing perjury by making false statements under oath in federal court, and demanded that the incumbent be allowed to run without either Peltola or the “FAKE Dan Sullivan” on the ballot.

He told reporters later that Peltola and any other alleged accomplices should be prosecuted. “To me, that’s voter fraud at the highest level,” he said. Senator Sullivan expressed outrage at the confusion, which mushroomed into a major campaign headache for Peltola six days before the November 3 election. “The candidate I’m running against had a scheme for over a year to try to trick Alaskans that shows total contempt for the people of the state,” the senator told Fox News host Sean Hannity. “She’s been cheating and lying to Alaskans.”

The Times noted that recruiting candidates to split an opponent’s vote — a practice known as ballot stacking — is generally legal and has been used by both parties in Alaska. As recently as 2024, little-known former Republican Anthony Frascone beat Democrat Mondaire Jones in a low-turnout Working Families Party primary in New York state. Jones’s campaign and the leftist WFP accused Frascone of being a Republican spoiler. Local Democratic leaders and a group of voters sued to remove him, but a Westchester judge kept him on the ballot.

The Times investigation did not establish criminal wrongdoing in the Alaska case or substantiate Trump’s allegation of perjury. The effort involved senior aides and lawyers for Peltola, as well as officials at the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC), according to the newspaper, which cited interviews, dozens of text messages and documents prepared for a potential lawsuit against the campaign.

– Peltola ‘definitely aware’ – Among those it said were recruited was Daniel J. Sullivan, a retired teacher from a remote Alaskan fishing community. He has said he entered the race of his own volition. The newspaper identified Democratic operative Jerid Kurtz as a central figure, reporting that he traveled around Alaska under an assumed name to court potential candidates.

The Times said Kurtz also urged a Democrat to quit the race after the August primary, opening a place on the four-candidate ranked-choice ballot for Republican Gerald Heikes, also a recruit. Heikes told the paper he was recruited by a Midwesterner who he did not think resembled a photo of Kurtz. Kurtz did not respond to requests for comment from the Times.

Peltola’s former campaign manager Elisa Rios told the paper the candidate was “definitely aware” of the project but not directly involved, and that DSCC aides had introduced Kurtz to the campaign. Rios, who was fired in August and had been planning a wrongful termination lawsuit, later sought to retract her statements. The Times said her account was consistent with its other reporting.

Peltola’s campaign and the DSCC have denied recruiting any candidates. The revelations come days after Trump ordered the Justice Department to sue Alaska over the presence of the second Sullivan on the ballot. The lawsuit seeks to delay certification if Peltola narrowly defeats the incumbent and votes cast for his namesake could have changed the outcome.

In June, Alaska’s Supreme Court upheld the retired teacher’s right to run, rejecting Republican efforts to remove him from the ballot. The state has asked a federal judge to dismiss the Justice Department’s lawsuit, arguing it has no legal basis.

– Frankie TAGGART

© 2024 AFP

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“It has just been determined that the Democrats in Alaska illegally searched for, and recruited, a man named Dan Sullivan,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. He accused Democrats of committing perjury by making false statements under oath in federal court, and demanded that the incumbent be allowed to run without either Peltola or the “FAKE Dan Sullivan” on the ballot. And he told reporters later that Peltola and any other alleged accomplices should be prosecuted. “To me, that’s voter fraud at the highest level,” he said.

But the Times noted that recruiting candidates to split an opponent’s vote — a practice known as ballot stacking — is generally legal and has been used by both parties in Alaska. As recently as 2024, little-known former Republican Anthony Frascone beat Democrat Mondaire Jones in a low-turnout Working Families Party primary in New York state. Jones’s campaign and the leftist WFP accused Frascone of being a Republican spoiler. Local Democratic leaders and a group of voters sued to remove him, but a Westchester judge kept him on the ballot.

The Times investigation did not establish criminal wrongdoing in the Alaska case or substantiate Trump’s allegation of perjury. The effort involved senior aides and lawyers for Peltola, as well as officials at the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC), according to the newspaper, which cited interviews, dozens of text messages, and documents prepared for a potential lawsuit against the campaign.

– Peltola ‘definitely aware’ –

Among those it said were recruited was Daniel J. Sullivan, a retired teacher from a remote Alaskan fishing community. He has said he entered the race of his own volition. The newspaper identified Democratic operative Jerid Kurtz as a central figure, reporting that he traveled around Alaska under an assumed name to court potential candidates. The Times said Kurtz also urged a Democrat to quit the race after the August primary, opening a place on the four-candidate ranked-choice ballot for Republican Gerald Heikes, also a recruit.

Heikes told the paper he was recruited by a Midwesterner who he did not think resembled a photo of Kurtz. Kurtz did not respond to requests for comment from the Times. Peltola’s former campaign manager Elisa Rios told the paper the candidate was “definitely aware” of the project but not directly involved, and that DSCC aides had introduced Kurtz to the campaign. Rios, who was fired in August and had been planning a wrongful termination lawsuit, later sought to retract her statements. The Times said her account was consistent with its other reporting. Peltola’s campaign and the DSCC have denied recruiting any candidates.

The revelations come days after Trump ordered the Justice Department to sue Alaska over the presence of the second Sullivan on the ballot. The lawsuit seeks to delay certification if Peltola narrowly defeats the incumbent and votes cast for his namesake could have changed the outcome. In June, Alaska’s Supreme Court upheld the retired teacher’s right to run, rejecting Republican efforts to remove him from the ballot. The state has asked a federal judge to dismiss the Justice Department’s lawsuit, arguing it has no legal basis.

– Frankie TAGGART

© 2024 AFP

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Ahead of the November 3 polls, it looks like American voters could punish Trump’s Republican party and hand control of one or both of the US House of Representatives or Senate to the Democrats. But while the hope may be that Trump could be reined in by a hostile Congress, multiple officials at the EU and NATO told AFP they doubt a big loss would muzzle him on the international stage. “We don’t think the unpredictability is going to change,” said one senior EU diplomat.

Publicly, the European Union is keeping its cards close to its chest. “We will not comment on any elections in the EU or abroad. Let’s wait for those and we’ll see where it goes,” said European Commission spokeswoman Paula Pinho. Behind closed doors as well, officials say that the midterms are not featuring much in the bloc’s internal discussions. “I suspect because a) it is difficult to really predict the result, b) one wouldn’t want to get too high hopes for change and c) not sure how much even a Democratic wave would impact foreign policy issues,” said a second senior EU diplomat.

– Ukraine, tariffs –

Ahead of the midterms, Trump has rattled Europe by yet again lashing out at Ukraine and cosying up to Russia as Washington has renewed its push to end the fighting. While a Democrat win could usher in a more vocal pro-Kyiv majority in Congress, the EU is not expecting US support for Ukraine to ramp up again. Officials in Brussels say they are focused on plugging a 70-billion-euro hole in Kyiv’s finances next year. And while they’re pushing other countries like Britain, Canada, and Japan to do more, they are certainly not counting on the United States.

Meanwhile, there is equally little optimism for any major reversal on the tariffs Trump has slapped on Europe. Diplomats and officials point out that it took months to get Democrat President Joe Biden to roll back tariffs on EU steel after Trump’s first term — and even then limitations remained. In a recent poll from the Washington-based Council on Foreign Relations, only one quarter of Americans backed removing all the tariffs on the EU.

– US forces in Europe? –

At NATO, the story is much the same. European allies are nervously waiting for the results of a Pentagon review of US forces on the continent that looks set to be unveiled in December. The widespread expectation is that it will see the United States scale back its deployments, although the hope is the cuts will not be too severe. Multiple diplomats at NATO said they didn’t envision the midterms having an impact on the review. While a changed Congress could see US lawmakers more outspoken in support of the alliance, the direction of travel is already set with Europe stepping up efforts to take more responsibility for its defence. “Whatever the outcome, we’ll keep going,” said one European diplomat.

– Trump unleashed? –

There is also a nagging fear that things could get worse after the midterms. If Republicans cling on, it could embolden Trump; meanwhile, if they lose, he could seek to distract from his woes at home by stirring up things abroad. “We have a history in America of presidents who get in trouble domestically turning more to the international stage,” said Bruce Stokes, a visiting fellow at the German Marshall Fund think tank. From an escalation in the Iran war to a more concerted push on Ukraine, there are numerous ways the White House can keep worrying Europe. “Trump has demonstrated they can’t stand not to be the centre of attention,” said Stokes. “If that means he needs to do more on the world stage, positively or negatively, that may be what ends up happening.”

© 2024 AFP

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