Trump Urges Virginians to Vote on Super Tuesday, Does Not Mention Haley

RICHMOND, Va.—Former President Donald Trump urged Virginians to vote for him on Super Tuesday at a rally on March 2 during which he made no mention of his rival Nikki Haley.

Trump took the stage at about 6:40 p.m. ET at Richmond’s Convention Center to Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the U.S.A.” He stood there for quite a few minutes and scanned the theater while enjoying his supporters’ cheers. This was his return to the city after seven years, and this event was his first rally in Virginia since 2020.

“We love Virginia,” he said. “We win Virginia; we win 100 percent. The election is over,” he referred to the Republican primary while touting his win on March 2 in the Missouri and Michigan Republican Caucuses, the races called by the start of his speech. The Idaho Caucus was called for him later during his speech.

He quickly moved on and talked about the general election, calling it, “the biggest day of Nov. 5.” He said President Joe Biden would be “judged and convicted by the American people” on Election Day in November, implying a general election defeat for President Biden.

President Trump focused on the border issue, promising his supporters that he would “seal the border and stop the invasion” on day one in the White House.

He joked that he was indicted so many times that his parents would look down from Heaven and ask, “What happened to our boy?” With so many ongoing lawsuits against him, he said the “radical left lunatics” were tougher to deal with than China, Russia, and North Korea.

The crowd at the event was over 2,500 and fewer than 3,000, according to a Convention Center staffer.

‘Let Him Do His Job’

Many of his supporters say President Trump is the best person to lead the United States, a country they consider fallen or even as sick as a terminally ill patient. They acknowledged President Trump’s “arrogance” or “brash personality” but said his determination and skills would outweigh the downsides.

Kristin Forbes, a 54-year-old professional in hotel management, drove about 45 minutes from Williamsburg to attend the rally.

“Can he have a brash personality sometimes? Absolutely. Does he sometimes hurt himself with the way that he portrays himself? Sure, he might. But that doesn’t mean that he’s not the best possible person for the job,” she told The Epoch Times.

She made an analogy of a terminally ill patient needing the best surgeon for the operation. “Do you care what his personality is? Or do you care about his skill set to do the job?” she asked.

She added, “Let him do his job. Look at what he’s done in four years of resistance and eight years of lawsuits. Can you imagine what he would do if he actually was able to do his job, and people got behind him and gave him a chance?”

Georgie Porter, a 53-year-old Hanover County resident working at a chemical factory, said she was “very excited” to be here. The last time she attended a Trump rally was in Norfolk in 2020. She has been voting for Trump “through and through” during all the presidential races.

She told The Epoch Times she was “very surprised” and “glad” about his visit because, as an assistant precinct chief, she knew “voter turnout so far has been very low.”

Like Ms. Forbes, Ms. Porter said President Trump might be “arrogant,” but she thought that was better than being a pushover.

Trump Faces Narrowest Margin Over Haley on Super Tuesday

In Virginia, President Trump holds a less than 10 point lead over Ms. Haley, according to polling site FiveThirtyEight.

A previously deeply red and now blue state, Virginia had a very brief flash of purple with Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s victory and the GOP flipping the state House in 2021. However, two years later, Republicans lost both the state House and Senate.

Among all 15 Super Tuesday states that will divide up 874 of the total 2,429 Republican delegates for candidates, President Trump holds the narrowest margin against Ms. Haley in Virginia, according to FiveThirtyEight. The site doesn’t have data available for Alaska.

The Republican candidate who wins 1,215 delegates becomes the de facto nominee. Currently, Trump has 244 delegates, while Ms. Haley has 24.