For Republicans, Dallas convention is both rally and rescue mission

InternationalFor Republicans, Dallas convention is both rally and rescue missionBy Reuters -Aug 24, 2026Add ARY News on GoogleAAResizeDALLAS: President Donald Trump’s Republican Party is increasingly viewing its first-of-a-kind midterm convention in Dallas next month as crucial to regaining momentum at a time when opinion polls show voter frustration over the economy and the Iran war, according to party officials, donors and ​convention planners. When Republicans announced the convention earlier this year, some strategists dismissed it as a distraction as campaigns entered the final stretch. They questioned the need for a national gathering with no ‌official party business. Now, after months of negative headlines tied to the war and rising living costs, party officials see the September 9-10 gathering as their best opportunity to rally voters behind Trump’s agenda as Democrats mount a serious challenge to Republican control of both houses of Congress in the November 3 election. Some Republicans, however, remain skeptical it can meaningfully shift voter sentiment. The party officials said the event offers a platform to refocus voters on Trump’s tax cuts, immigration policies and other achievements. Organizers plan to spotlight Americans they ​say have benefited from those policies while portraying the Democratic Party as increasingly dominated by socialist ideas and activists, according to a source familiar with the planning. The party plans to put Trump at the ​center of the convention, a tactic some strategists warn could backfire by drawing attention to a president with a low approval rating who has repeatedly urged Americans to ⁠endure the economic costs of the Iran war. Republican National Committee spokesperson Natalie Baldassarre said the convention would rally voters behind Trump’s agenda, including efforts to lower drug prices, cut taxes and secure the southern border with Mexico. “President ​Trump turns out voters like no other candidate, and this conventio...