Trump Nicki Minaj, Nicki Minaj rally, Mike Rogers Senate race
Minaj appeared with Trump at a Washington summit in January and was among the final speakers at his weekend campaign event Official White House photo by Daniel Torok / Public domain

Donald Trump praised Nicki Minaj's backside at a rally in Michigan on Sunday, 25 October, drawing cheers from the crowd. He later brought the rapper on stage. He was in Port Huron to help Mike Rogers, a Republican seeking to win an open US Senate seat on 3 November.

The remark came nine days before polling day in Michigan, a state Trump won in 2024, where Democrats hold both Senate seats. A Marist poll taken from 15 to 18 October put Democrat Abdul El-Sayed on 50 per cent. Rogers had 48 per cent among likely voters.

What Trump Said About Minaj

Trump reached Minaj through Jon Husted, Ohio's Republican Senate candidate. In North Carolina on 20 October, Trump said he was studying Husted's body. In Port Huron on Sunday, he added that he had looked at Husted's backside, a first with a man. 'By the way, I looked at one hell of a beautiful a** before,' he then said. He pointed at Minaj and told her to stand up.

Trump then told the crowd, 'I hope Nicki wasn't insulted, but we love Nicki.' Minaj had flown there with him on Air Force One. Steven Cheung, Trump's communications director, shared a video interview with her on board. At the Trump Accounts Summit in Washington in January, she called herself 'probably the President's number one fan.' In February, Trump called her 'so beautiful' at a White House Black History Month reception.

Minaj's Message to the Crowd

Minaj spoke near the end of the rally at McMorran Place, a sports arena in the city. Trump introduced her with a joke: 'You know, I don't like being overshadowed.' She led chants for Rogers and John James, the Republican candidate for Michigan governor. Turning to Trump, she said, 'If you run again, I will support you again.' The 22nd Amendment bars anyone from being elected president more than twice.

Clips of the remark spread quickly on social media. On X, the conservative commentator Eric Daugherty said Trump had 'ZERO FILTER' and that there would never be another like him. Ron Filipkowski, a regular critic of the president who edits the MeidasTouch news site, wrote that Trump was now comparing 'the a**es of Jon Husted and Nicki Minaj.' Minaj herself answered an earlier Trump joke about her in July by posting an image of the horror doll Chucky.

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What It Means for Rogers

Rogers is a former congressman and FBI agent who narrowly lost Michigan's 2024 Senate race to Democrat Elissa Slotkin by fewer than 20,000 votes. No Republican has won a Senate race in the state since 1994. This time, Rogers is seeking the seat held by retiring Democrat Gary Peters, and a win would flip it to the Republicans.

Democrats brought out their own star a day before Trump's visit. Former President Barack Obama rallied with El-Sayed in Detroit on Saturday, as in-person early voting, which runs until 1 November, opened across the state. Polling averages compiled this month give El-Sayed, a physician, a two- to three-point lead, within the margin of error of most recent surveys.

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