Trumpchella: Former President Donald Trump To Host Unusually Rare Election Season Campaign Rally In Coachella

Former President Donald Trump announced this week that he will be hosting a rare Presidential election rally in California in Coachella, a city located in the Coachella Valley area of the Colorado Desert outside of Palm Springs.

Early fall fundraising stops during presidential election years is nothing new in California. As the state has well over 1 million millionaires, with Republicans and Democrats boasting many deep-pocketed donors, California has long been a coffer refueling stop for candidates from both parties, despite being a virtual lock for Democrats. Last month, both Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Trump went through major donor fundraising events in the state. Trump aimed for his Orange County, Los Angeles, and Silicon Valley donors during his pass through, while Harris went for her rich Bay Area and Hollywood donors. Minnesota Governor and Vice Presidential Candidate Tim Walz even made a rare October fundraising run through California in the past week.

However, pure rallies with no fundraising components are rarer by Presidential candidates during campaign season in the Golden State. As California is a lock for President and all but certain for U.S. Senator, there is little reason for a stop. Despite this, Trump announced the Coachella event. Officially, the Trump campaign said that they want to go after Harris in her home state and go after her record and highlight rising costs in the state, as well as to meet and greet many of Trump’s largest supporters and donors despite it not being a fundraising event.

In a statement, Trump spokesman Stephen Cheung said that “Kamala Harris did unthinkable damage to California during her six years as the most liberal Attorney General in state history, and she has done even more damage to our Country as Vice President.”

“This is the future Harris and Walz want for the rest of America—crippling inflation, unaffordable housing, and sky-high gas prices,” the Trump campaign also said. “If this is the California Dream, it’s every American’s worst nightmare.”

The visit will also serve multiple secondary purposes. Being next door to both Arizona and Nevada, the event is expected to bring in many supporters from those states and serve as a bump. His visit is also expected to shore up support for nearby close House races, primarily the 41st Congressional district where incumbent Congressman Ken Calvert (R-CA) is currently only a few points ahead of Attorney Will Rollins (D). The visit will also connect Trump to Latino voters, a critical voting bloc in every swing state, the rally being a key way to connect with them and show others the amount of support he has from them in states like California.

While there is excitement over a rare California rally that aims to do a lot, the rally has not been well received by everyone. The Harris campaign casually dismissed it, with Spokesman Ammar Moussar saying that “Oh no. This is extremely concerning for our campaign. Please do not go to Coachella, CALIFORNIA 24 days before the election.”

Oh no. This is extremely concerning for our campaign. Please do not go to Coachella, CALIFORNIA 24 days before the election. https://t.co/QJoe3Ysyh4

— Ammar Moussa (@ammarmufasa) October 7, 2024

Locally, many Democratic lawmakers have been more blunt on the visit. Coachella Mayor Steve Hernandez said in a statement on Tuesday, “The City of Coachella was proud to welcome Senator Bernie Sanders during the 2020 primary election, but news of former President Trump’s upcoming visit has been met very differently. Trump’s attacks on immigrants, women, the LQBTQ community and the most vulnerable among us don’t align with the values of our community.

“He has consistently expressed disdain for the type of diversity that helps define Coachella. We don’t know why Trump is visiting near Coachella, but we know he wasn’t invited by the people who live here. He ain’t like us.”

Despite this, many have said that this could be an unorthodox sort of boost for Trump.

“This isn’t the most conventional mid-October rally, but it is one  where he is killing multiple birds with one stone,” explained voter outreach coordinator Luis Valdez to the Globe on Wednesday. “Yes, he is attacking Harris in her home state and meeting all his rich donors and supporters. But, like you said, he’s boosting all these local House races, going after high costs and will critically be meeting a large Latino crowd in a blue state. Trump can use that latter fact, not to mention footage of it, in a lot of last minute ads against Harris.

“This isn’t a bad decision. Also, think to the headlines, like Trump being in Harris’ home state. It won’t look good that Trump is getting a huge amount of supporters from her home state, not to mention swing states like Arizona and Nevada, coming out for him. This was actually well calculated to make this a friendly event despite the hostilities. This will in no way turn around California, but it will serve so many other purposes.”

Trump’s event on Saturday will take place amidst triple digit temperatures in the Coachella Valley.