Obama and Trump split closing pushes in Georgia and Ohio

The final week before the midterm elections has split the former and current presidents across two states that could shape the balance of power. President Donald Trump is campaigning in Ohio while former President Barack Obama is in Georgia, each trying to lock in their message for a national electorate facing high energy costs and an active conflict in the Middle East.

Trump addressed a crowd in Chillicothe, a city south of Columbus, on Wednesday. He told supporters that if they get to the polls, the Republican Party will secure a major win. He has held more than 20 rallies this month alone and plans to visit South Carolina, Florida, Kansas, and Iowa in the coming days. This schedule focuses heavily on states that turned out for him in the 2024 presidential election.

During his speech in Chillicothe, Trump was interrupted by a protester shouting about Jeffrey Epstein. Trump responded by saying he expelled Epstein from Mar-a-Lago decades ago. He then shifted his attention to Ohio Senator Jon Husted, praising the former football player's physical appearance. Trump is trying to help Husted defeat Sherrod Brown, the former Democratic senator from Ohio.

In Atlanta, Obama campaigned with Keisha Lance Bottoms, who is running for governor, and Senator Jon Ossoff, who is seeking reelection. Bottoms would be the first Black woman elected governor in the United States if she wins. Obama used the platform to criticize Trump's management of the White House renovations. He said the current president is spending time super-gluing gold medallions to the mantel in the Oval Office.

Obama also addressed recent backlash over a comment he made earlier in the week comparing Trump's interior design choices to a Cheesecake Factory owned by Saddam Hussein. Obama said he and his wife enjoyed those restaurants for about a decade. He dismissed the critics by saying they are not serious people and lack solutions to actual problems.

Senator Jon Ossoff focused his remarks on the Trump Organization. He described the president's use of his office as a profit source as a spectacle of grift unprecedented in American history. He noted that the White House says Trump has ceded control of the family business to his sons, but Ossoff argued that little effort has been made to cover up the corruption.

The campaign trail also saw Trump turn his attention to the Senate race in Alaska. He directed the Department of Justice to file a lawsuit last week to contest the outcome if Democratic challenger Mary Peltola wins. That move follows a report that Peltola's campaign was involved in an effort to recruit a second candidate named Dan Sullivan, the same name as the Republican incumbent. Trump called the situation voter fraud at the highest level and warned Peltola she could face prosecution.

In Michigan, the Senate race between Abdul El-Sayed and Mike Rogers has drawn attention due to accusations of antisemitism. El-Sayed told a crowd in Wyandotte that Republicans are trying to distract voters by pointing to his name. He said Michiganders are open-minded and care more about what people pray for than how they pray.

Senator Ted Cruz campaigned with Mike Rogers in Birmingham, Michigan, at an event hosted by the Republican Jewish Coalition. Cruz called antisemitism a poison that is ripping the country apart. He said the Democratic Party is being taken over by self-proclaimed communists and Islamists. Several voters at the event said they are lifelong Democrats voting Republican for the first time because of El-Sayed's comments from last year about a synagogue attack in a Detroit suburb.