As Election Day quickly approaches on November 5, former President Donald Trump, the GOP nominee, is set to deliver remarks on Sunday at a campaign rally at Madison Square Garden in New York, a state he trails Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee, by double digits.
When and Where to Watch
Announcing the rally earlier this month, Trump said that he would hold the event to “make a play for New York.”
“We just rented Madison Square Garden,” he told a cheering crowd in Joe Biden‘s hometown of Scranton, Pennsylvania. “It hasn’t been done in many decades. But we’re gonna make…how can New York be run worse than it is right?”
While doors open for attendees at 12 p.m., the rally is expected to begin at 5 p.m. Those unable to attend in person can watch the live streamed event on C-SPAN, the Right Side Broadcasting Network’s (RSBN) website, as well as from the New York Post‘s website.
Newsweek has reached out to Trump’s campaign via email for comment on Sunday morning.
Who’s Attending?
In addition to Trump’s running mate, Ohio Senator JD Vance, some of the speakers for the rally include House Speaker Mike Johnson, billionaire and Tesla CEO Elon Musk, former mayor of New York City Rudy Giuliani, former independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., former Democratic Representative Tulsi Gabbard, and CEO of Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Dana White.
Meanwhile, the event is expected to draw thousands as Republican lawmakers such as Representative Elise Stefanik of New York and Representative Byron Donalds of Florida are also scheduled to attend and give remarks.
In addition, Trump’s family members Lara Trump, Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. are also expected to speak.
Madison Square Garden, home to the New York Knicks and one of the most famous arenas in the world, has a capacity of 19,500 seats.
The venue hosted the Democratic National Convention in 1924, 1976, 1980 and 1992, as well as the Republican National Convention in 2004.
However, the event is expected to draw both support and protesters to the area as New York City Mayor Eric Adams warned there may be potential impacts to Manhattan.
“New Yorkers are going to see a large police presence around Madison Square Garden for the presidential candidate, Trump’s rally. There will be many protections that you will see, and many that you will not see,” Adams told reporters.
In addition, the NYPD is preparing for protesters outside of the venue.
“Regarding any demonstration at the event, as always, the NYPD will protect everyone’s right to peacefully protest but we will never tolerate any violence, property damage, or any criminal activity whatsoever,” interim NYPD Commissioner Thomas Donlon said.
ANGELA WEISS / AFP/Getty Images
Campaigning in the State
While New York is a reliably blue state, and Democratic candidates typically win statewide easily because of massive margins in New York City, Trump has continued to campaign in the state as he has held several other campaign events including rallies in the Bronx and Nassau County on Long Island.
New York Polls
Several polls show a closer race this year than previous ones, with some polls even showing a single-digit race on the presidential level, though forecasters have never viewed New York as particularly competitive.
However, Harris is still expected to easily carry the state, which is classified as “Safe Democrat” by the Cook Political Report. According to FiveThirtyEight’s poll tracker, Harris is ahead of Trump in New York by 14.5 points, with 53.9 percent to his 39.4 percent, as of Sunday.
New York last backed a Republican in 1984 when it voted for Ronald Reagan. In 2016, former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton carried the state by 22 points when she ran against Trump, and Biden carried it by 23 points in 2020 against the former president.
Still, there have been signs that Republicans have been doing better in New York. In addition to polls suggesting the race could be close, Republicans hope to duplicate gains they made during the 2022 midterms.
Although Democrats overperformed midterm expectations in most states, New York was one of the few states that saw a “red wave” two years ago. Republicans won five of the state’s six competitive congressional districts. Also, the gubernatorial race was closer than expected, with Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul winning by only 6.4 points against then-Representative Lee Zeldin.