Some of the observations I had from watching President Donald Trump’s speech at his October 26, 2026, rally in Corinth, Mississippi’s Crossroads Arena included some of what I didn’t see, rather than what I did.
Monday’s event, which was announced last week, evidenced the shrinking margin polls show Mississippi Republican United States Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith to be ahead of her Democratic challenger Scott Colom.
An October 22nd poll by www.pollwave.com showed Hyde-Smith with a 6.8% lead, 53.4% to 46.6% over Colom. It’s now considered a close race as Republicans battle to maintain their majority in the United States Senate and Trump’s visit to the Magnolia State evidences the same.
Eight days before the November 3rd general election, Trump came to support Hyde-Smith in a state where his approval rating now sits at an all-time low, 44%, according to an October 6, 2026 poll by the Clarion-Ledger, Mississippi’s largest newspaper.
That approval number for the President still remains one of the nation’s highest, so Trump’s appearance was welcomed by Mississippi’s GOP, not the case in other states where incumbent Republicans have distanced themselves from Trump and the nation’s growing discontent with the ongoing war with Iran.
Something else you didn’t see Monday in Corinth were empty seats, as crowds that waited for hours quickly filled the arena once the gates opened mid-afternoon.
“I’m here because Cindy’s doing great, but I’ve just got to make sure. I can’t take a chance,” Trump told an overflow crowd of more than 7,000 inside Crossroads Arena. Another estimated 1,500 gathered outside the arena to hear the President’s words Monday evening.
Trump has no plans to return to Alabama in the final days of Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s campaign for governor against Democrat Doug Jones, or Republican Barry Moore’s battle with Democrat Everett Wess to fill the Senate seat being vacated by Tuberville.
Alabama continues to be one of Trump’s most popular states, and the dominance by Republicans for all state and federal level offices appears as if it will continue. It’s logical to state Trump would have visited Alabama if any Senate or Congressional Republican seats were in peril.
Trump’s one hour-plus speech touched on all the President’s usual talking points, including attacks on Democrats, the ‘fake news’ media, and a relentless assault on Minnesota Democratic Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, all to the roaring delight of the packed house.
It was the President in his element, doing what he does best, and he looked extremely comfortable in the role.
It wasn’t the first time a sitting President visited Corinth, a town of approximately 15,000 residents located 50 miles or so north of Tupelo. President William McKinley came to Corinth in 1901, and President Franklin D. Roosevelt visited Corinth in 1934.
The only blemish on an otherwise perfect evening for Mississippi’s GOP was a heckler who interrupted Trump voicing his objection to the White House renovations. His brief interruption, telling Trump to “shove that ballroom up your fat a—,” was met with Trump’s immediate response of “Oh, go home,” followed by Trump’s assertion that hecklers like this one get paid to disrupt his events.
The heckler was promptly removed from the arena with his interruption proving minimal.
And in classic Trump fashion, he complimented the appearance of two women in the audience, saying Mississippi has “beautiful women,” even though he acknowledged the compliment might get him criticized.