DALLAS, Texas – Facing a brutal political environment as the GOP fights to hold control of Congress, President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance used their speeches on the concluding night of the first ever Republican midterm convention to paint clear contrasts with Democrats and energize supporters to vote.
With less than two months until the midterm elections — and early voting kicking off in a couple of weeks — Trump showcased his policy wins since returning to the White House and led the crowd at American Airlines Center in Dallas in an oath to vote as he made his second primetime convention appearance in two nights.
“You know what happens if you don’t vote? You go to hell,” the president warned.
Vance, in a strikingly partisan keynote address, charged that the Democratic Party is the “party of hatred.” And with the next race for the White House kicking off once the midterms are over, Vance, the likely heir apparent for the term-limited Trump, was showered with chants of “48” – as in the 48th president – as he delivered his address.
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The speeches by Vance and Trump capped a day that included appearances by some of the other major figures in the GOP, and the party pulled out all the stops to boost morale in the stretch run to the midterms.
Here are the top takeaways from night two of the midterm convention.
Trump’s pledge
Facing an energized Democratic Party heading into the midterms, the main mission of the Republican convention was to motivate the GOP’s MAGA base, which has a history of sitting it out when Trump isn’t on the ballot, to vote this autumn.
Trump reiterated on Thursday evening that his supporters needed to “do me the biggest favor you’ve ever done… You’ve got to do this for me. You’ve got to pretend I’m on the ticket.”
The president then led the crowd in a pledge.
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“I pledge to the greatest president in the history of America,” Trump said as many in the arena repeated his words.
“I am going to go out, and I’m going to get my friends, my family, and we are going to vote on November 3rd, or we are going to vote before that,” Trump continued before warning that if they didn’t cast a ballot, they’d “go to hell.”
Trump’s unusual pitch
The president repeated his offer to Americans that he announced a night earlier, what he on Thursday described as the “Trump dividend.”
On Wednesday, Trump pledged a $5,000 dividend for every adult U.S. citizen if Republicans retain control of the House and Senate in the midterms.
“We can do that because our country has never done better. We’re taking in trillions, trillions of dollars,” the president argued.
Trump also showcased his second term achievements, claiming that “in 19 months, I’ve delivered on every single promise I made.”
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“We delivered the largest tax cuts in American history, the largest regulation cuts in American history, the largest investment in our military in the history of our country, and made America the energy and military superpower of the world,” the president proclaimed.
Trump and Republicans are banking that their litany of political wins can rebuff traditional headwinds – the party in power traditionally loses congressional seats in the midterms. The GOP is also battling a rough environment fueled by persistent inflation, a new surge in gas and diesel prices due to a flare-up in the ongoing war with Iran, and a deepening trade war with neighboring Canada.
While Trump touted “tremendous economic success,” public opinion polls paint a very different picture, with the president’s overall approval rating, and especially his handling of the economy, well into negative territory.
Inflation was a key issue that helped boost Trump and the GOP to sweeping election victories in 2024, but Democrats say affordability has been the issue that fueled their ballot box victories and overperformances since Trump returned to the White House.
The Democratic National Committee (DNC), which remains in debt and decided against holding a similar convention, was more than happy to focus on the economy.
“The only people reaping the benefits of Trump’s economy are himself, his family, and his ultrarich elite donors. Meanwhile, working families get nothing except sky-high receipts at the grocery store and the pump, unaffordable healthcare premiums, and wages that aren’t keeping up with inflation,” DNC Rapid Response Director Kendall Witmer charged.
‘Radical left lunatics’
Midterm elections are often a referendum on the party in power, but Republicans used their convention to draw a contrast as they spotlighted the Democrats’ leftward lurch in this year’s primaries and tied the party to far-left and socialist proposals.
“They’re not socialists. They’re not Democrats, they’re communists. We will reject these radical left lunatics,” Trump charged for a second straight night.
Vance, in his address minutes earlier, urged Republicans “to send a message this November that the country does not belong to the radicals.”
Vance unloads on Democrats
The vice president also argued that Democrats have metastasized into a party that stands against America.
“Let’s never forget that America belongs to those who love it, not those who hate it,” Vance said.
The vice president also targeted Democrats over combustible issues such as race and immigration. And he took aim at Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic Senate nominee in battleground Michigan, for suggesting that Vance’s grandfather would object to his marrying a woman of Indian descent.
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“This is what he thinks of my grandfather, a man I loved and who loved his family unconditionally. Abdul looks at him, sees the color of his skin, sees his background, and decides that he could never have loved my wife,” Vance said.
The vice president argued that Democrats are no longer “the party of FDR or JFK. Hell, they’re not even the party of Bill Clinton anymore. The Democrats are the party of hatred. They’re the party that despises America and the people who built it.”
Ahead of his speech, the DNC claimed that “JD Vance has been Donald Trump’s most loyal puppet.”
And the DNC predicted that “Vance will continue to gaslight Americans, but voters know the truth: Trump and Vance have tanked the economy, plunged the country into more endless wars, and failed to make life more affordable for everyday Americans.”
Vance’s 2028 moment
While he hasn’t said if he’ll seek the presidency in 2028, Vance is seen as the front-runner in the race to succeed Trump.
The convention gave Vance the opportunity to appear as a presidential candidate in waiting.
While in Dallas, Vance was warmly received Thursday morning by delegates from key battleground states, and he headlined a top-dollar fundraiser for the RNC.
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And during his address, the vice president was interrupted by shouts of “48.”
But Vance, at least publicly, remains laser focused on 2026.
“We’ve got to take care of business this November, then we’ll worry about what comes next,” Vance quickly responded.
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