Can Trump Pull Off an Historic Win in Blue Minnesota?
In 2016, Trump lost Minnesota by about 45,000 votes. This year, he is clearly making an attempt to close the gap there and pull off a win that would sting Democrats for years to come.
The left didn’t do itself any favors by burning down Minneapolis this summer, and Trump was also helped by gaining the endorsements of multiple mayors in the state’s ‘Iron Range’ region.
When it comes to liberal journalism, The Atlantic is as anti-Trump as they come. Yet even they are acknowledging Trump’s efforts to win Minnesota and how they might work.
Peter Nicholas writes:
How Trump Could Shock the World AgainThe president will be better positioned for another Electoral College victory if he can pry loose a state or two that Democrats won last time. His campaign has been eyeing New Hampshire and Nevada, but another target, Minnesota, has as many Electoral College votes as the other two combined. Clinton carried Minnesota by only 45,000 votes in 2016. Although Republicans haven’t won it since 1972, a play for Minnesota is not a bad gamble: At minimum, competing in the state forces Democrats to divert resources from other battlegrounds.Minnesota Democrats estimate that as many as 250,000 white residents who didn’t go to college—the heart of Trump’s base—weren’t registered to vote in 2016. Republicans are taking pains to find them. While Democrats in the state have largely suspended door-to-door campaigning because of the pandemic, Republicans have kept at it. Last week, volunteers knocked on more than 130,000 doors in the state, a campaign official told me. “This is the largest organization that we’ve seen a Republican put into this state, in terms of advertising dollars, principal visits, and staff on the ground,” Ken Martin, the chair of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, told me. “There’s no doubt that they have a significant operation here.”Trump’s campaign has booked more than $1.2 million in TV advertising in Minnesota in the final week of the campaign—more than it spent there in the preceding three weeks combined, according to Advertising Analytics, which tracks campaigns’ ad spending. Vice President Mike Pence held a rally in northern Minnesota on Monday, the latest in a series of visits to the state by Trump and top surrogates. Overall, the Trump campaign has deployed 60 staffers in Minnesota, a level of Republican intensity surpassing that of any race in memory, both parties say.
In perhaps the greatest sign that even Democrats know this could happen, Joe Biden held a campaign event in Minnesota on Friday, a move that looked more like defense than confidence.
Things went about as well as you might expect:
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison appeared on CNN this week and admitted Trump has a chance to win.
Beth Baumann writes at Townhall:
“The president is putting a lot of money into your state. He’s greatly increased his ad buy, $1.2 million in TV advertising in the final week of the campaign, more than was spent in the preceding three weeks combined. Do you think the president has a real shot in Minnesota?” CNN’s Chris Cuomo asked.The attorney general said he could see the possibility of Trump pulling out a win in Minnesota.“Honestly, yeah, I do. I will tell you that I believe in our campaign workers and organizers. They’re working extremely hard. I can tell you that Minnesotans know what a problem Trump is,” Ellison explained. “They know he doesn’t care about their health care. They know all the bad things about him. But, you know, there are some folks who still are supporting him. And so what I tell people is, one, he does have a shot, don’t play it cheap, work hard for every single vote. And don’t stop until 8 o’clock on November 3.”
Watch below:
According to GOP Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel, Trump’s last appearance Minnesota drew more than just Republicans:
If Trump closes the deal in Minnesota, it will be the first time a Republican has won the state since 1972. It would cause a political earthquake.
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