Live updates: Trump to rally for GOP candidates in Alaska

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President Donald Trump’s new White House press secretary, Katie Zacharia, is holding her first press briefing this morning.

President Donald Trump will campaign in Alaska today. Mandel Ngan / AFP via Getty

The last election left Republicans with a bare-bones majority in the House: 220 seats to 215 for Democrats. That means a net loss of just three seats in November would cost them control. Historically speaking, this puts the GOP up against it, since the president’s party almost always takes a hit in midterm elections.

This, of course, was the case for Trump and Republicans during his first term, in 2018. Back then, the president’s average approval rating was about 43%, and Republicans lost a net of 40 House seats. Right now, it sits under 40%, according to the NBC News polling average. So by one key metric, the president and his party are in worse shape this time around.

Katie Zacharia will hold her first press briefing as the new White House press secretary this morning.

Trump announced Friday that the conservative commentator would succeed Karoline Leavitt, who left the administration in August.

“She has an unblemished record of support, and has been a loyal and brilliant supporter, right from the beginning,” Trump said in last week’s Truth Social post announcing Zacharia’s appointment. “She is, likewise, a devoted fan and member of MAGA!”

Zacharia is joining the administration just weeks before midterm elections. The president has been traveling across the country in an effort to motivate his base, repeatedly instructing his supporters to pretend that he is on the ballot.

At the same time, the president’s approval rating has sagged as Americans grapple with the cost of living and the war in Iran. An NBC News poll from September found that 41% of registered voters approved of Trump’s performance, while polling averages more recently put him a few points lower.

Before her appointment, Zacharia was a senior communications adviser for Trump Media & Technology Group.

Trump will rally in Alaska tonight at 10 p.m. ET as part of his cross-country barnstorming in the final stretch of campaign season.

The Alaska Senate race is one of the marquee battleground races next month, with incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan in a close race against Democrat Mary Peltola.

Another Dan Sullivan will also be on the ballot, although Republicans have condemned the same-named candidate as trying to confuse voters, which he has denied.

The state typically leans red, and Trump won the state in 2016, 2020 and 2024.

The president traveled to Ohio yesterday, which is a battleground for the Senate and governor races. Later this week, Trump plans to hold rallies in Arizona and Montana, and he has has also made stops in Tennessee, Texas and Nebraska in recent days.