Trump Tells Republicans to 'Pretend' He's on November Ballot, Promises $5,000 if GOP Keeps Congress

Donald Trump urged Republican voters to behave as though his own name were on November's ballot as he promised a $5,000 (£3,700) payment to adult US citizens if the GOP keeps control of Congress.

Speaking at the Republican Party's first-ever midterm convention in Dallas on Wednesday, Trump made himself the centrepiece of the party's effort to hold its House and Senate majorities in the 3 November elections.

'I'm asking you to pretend that I'm on the ballot,' Trump told supporters. 'Just one more time.' He warned that a Republican defeat would put border policies, tax cuts, public safety and Americans' wealth at risk.

Trump Dangles $5,000 'Dividend'

Trump then offered voters a more tangible reason to want a Republican victory: what he called a $5,000 'Trump dividend'.

The president said every adult US citizen would receive the payment if Republicans retained both chambers of Congress, adding that the money would have to be spent in the United States. He gave no details about how the scheme would be administered or funded.

Such a payout would likely cost well over $1 trillion. Reuters estimated a cost of about $1.35 trillion if $5,000 were paid to roughly 270 million US adults, while the Associated Press calculated about $1.23 trillion based on the adult citizen population.

Any nationwide payout would also require congressional approval rather than being something Trump could simply distribute himself.

Trump cited what he called the country's 'tremendous strength and success economically' while announcing the proposal. Shortly afterwards, Vice-President JD Vance suggested wealthy Americans might not receive the payment and said tariff revenue could help fund it, although the proposed cost would far exceed tariff receipts.

Trump Tries To Beat the Midterm Curse

The extraordinary pitch comes as Republicans face a familiar political problem: the president's party has historically tended to lose congressional seats during midterm elections.

Trump acknowledged the pattern and called the effort to break it a 'beautiful challenge'. His decision to tell supporters to imagine him personally on the ballot reflects Republican concerns about whether his coalition will turn out when Trump himself is not running.

The Dallas gathering is itself unusual. Republicans normally hold national conventions during presidential election years, but the party created the two-day event as it seeks to energise its base ahead of November.

Trump vowed to make multiple visits to battleground states and districts during the final eight weeks of the campaign as Republicans fight to protect both chambers.

Iran War Hangs Over Republican Campaign

Trump's speech also returned to the continuing US war with Iran, which has become a difficult issue for Republicans amid higher energy prices and concerns about how long the conflict will last.

He defended launching the war as necessary to prevent Tehran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and again predicted oil prices would fall 'as soon as we win the war with Iran'.

More than six months after the United States and Israel launched strikes, however, the conflict remains unresolved.

Reuters reported that the Iran war and cost of living are among the issues weighing on Republican prospects heading into the midterms. For Trump, the strategy was to make November as much about himself as possible.

Although he will not appear on the ballot, his message to supporters was unmistakable: vote for Republican candidates as though Trump himself were running, with a promised $5,000 'dividend' attached if his party keeps control of Congress.