Donald Trump will travel to South Carolina on Saturday for the first official rally of his 2024 campaign in what could be a key weekend for the former president.
Trump will first visit New Hampshire, a key early voting state in the presidential primaries, where he will speak at the annual meeting of the state’s Republican Party in Salem.
The trip comes as Special Counsel Jack Smith continues his investigation into Trump’s handling of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida.
Smith, a career prosecutor, was appointed by Attorney General Merrick Garland to weigh whether charges should be brought. Trump has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and criticized the Department of Justice for an FBI search of the property on August 8, 2020.
Trump is also under political pressure as he mounts his third run for the White House and a recent poll indicates that New Hampshire residents prefer Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. A University of New Hampshire Survey Center study published on Thursday showed Trump trailing the Republican governor by 12 points.
DeSantis has not announced that he is running for president but he is seen as a potential rival for the GOP nomination. Former Vice President Mike Pence is also believed to be considering a run and has attended multiple events in recent months, while distancing himself from Trump.
On Thursday, former national security adviser John Bolton told CBS News that Trump’s 2024 campaign was “going downhill and I think it’ll continue to go downhill.” He called the former president “poison” for the Republican Party.
“He cannot be elected president. If he were the Republican nominee, he would doom our chances to get a majority in the Senate and the House. I don’t think he’s going to be the Republican nominee,” Bolton said.
Bolton also suggested that he could mount his own presidential campaign in an effort to prevent Trump from being re-elected. Trump appeared to respond on his Truth Social platform on Friday, calling Bolton “one of the dumbest people in Government.”
However, there appeared to be a bright spot for Trump ahead of his visits to New Hampshire and South Carolina: Ronna McDaniel secured re-election as chairwoman of the Republican National Committee on Friday.
McDaniel defeated challengers including MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell and California Republican Harmeet Dhillon, who had been endorsed by DeSantis.
After her re-election, Trump wrote on Truth Social: “Congratulations to Ronna McDaniel on her big WIN as RNC CHAIR. Now we have to STOP THE DEMOCRATS FROM CHEATING IN ELECTIONS!”
Newsweek has asked former President Trump’s office for comment.
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