Comment As Republican candidates make their final appeal in key states, they are reaching out to some of their party’s most polarizing figures and turning to messages that focus on cultural division and sometimes promote racial discord. The events included dueling rallies Sunday night in Florida with former President Donald Trump and the state’s governor, Ron DeSandis. And some have delivered tough rhetoric, including former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley who suggested during a campaign stop in Georgia on Sunday that Sen. Raphael G. Warnock (D-Ga.), who is a U.S. citizen, should expelled. At the same time, many Democrats are trying to emphasize more moderate issues, ignoring their party’s far left and bringing in surrogates who appeal to middle-of-the-road voters, such as former President Bill Clinton, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Sen. . Amy Klobuchar (Minn.) On Sunday in Pennsylvania — one of the nation’s most pivotal Senate races — Democrats fell so hard to the center that they held an event with a former Republican congressman. Key races in Tuesday’s election remain extremely tight, with operatives on both sides hedging their predictions. The messages and messengers highlighted by the campaigns in recent days usually reveal where strategists believe they can extract additional votes. The approaches reflect diverging strategies in how candidates from both parties view their path to victory. For the most part, Republicans want their base out. Democrats are trying to present themselves as moderates who will turn down the heat. During these appearances, Democrats take on more dynamic issues like crime and the economy, acknowledging voters’ concerns and highlighting ways party leaders are addressing them. Clinton, making an appearance in Brooklyn on Saturday for New York Gov. Kathy Hotchul (D), told a crowd that inflation is “alarming” and acknowledged “some high-profile crimes.” The former president tried to label Republicans as extremists. He said Republican gubernatorial candidate Lee Zeldin “on every issue, … took the most extreme position.” Clinton added: “And if you think New York should be the most extreme state in the country, go for it.” During a rally for Hochul at Sarah Lawrence College on Sunday night, President Biden said the country is at “an inflection point.” He said the election was about a choice between two “fundamentally different” visions for the country. He boasted about creating millions of new jobs, low unemployment and investing billions in infrastructure. He credited Hochul with repairing roads, expanding high-speed internet access and improving water systems. “It’s helping New York lead — lead the way in making things happen in America,” Biden said. On Sunday night, Clinton was also scheduled to appear at an event for Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.). Haley made inflammatory comments on immigration during a campaign rally Sunday in support of Republican Senate candidate Herschel Walker, saying Warnock should be kicked out of the country. “The only person we need to make sure we get sent off is Warnock,” Haley said, prompting loud cheers and applause from the crowd. Moments earlier, she spoke about being the daughter of Indian immigrants and said her parents “are offended by what’s happening at the border.” “Legal immigrants are more patriotic than leftists these days,” he told a crowd of hundreds of Walker supporters. “They love America and they want the laws to be followed in America.” Sen. Josh Hawley (R) of Missouri, who famously pumped a fist in the air to show support for protesters outside the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, has also fired back at crowds in Ohio and Arizona in recent days with messages aimed squarely at of the pro-Donald Trump party. Speaking Saturday night at a Columbus hotel, Hawley said: “They say our United States is built on slavery and corruption. Here’s what we say: There is nothing wrong with the United States of America. Something is wrong with them. We don’t need to change countries. We have to change the leadership of the country.” Some of the GOP’s divisive rhetoric worries Democrats and civil rights leaders who are increasingly worried about tensions surrounding Tuesday’s election. Critics say they are particularly alarmed by the rise in overt political violence, from the Jan. 6 attack to the violent attack on Paul Pelosi, husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). “They are blatantly—in many areas blatantly—appealing to people’s racial prejudice to get them to vote ‘us versus them,’” the Reverend Al Sharpton said in an interview with the Washington Post. Sharpton said he had just spoken with Biden, who he said had recorded a message raising concerns about racism and anti-Semitism for his radio show. “It used to be subtle,” Sharpton said of inciting racial division. “They wouldn’t be clear. It was implicit. Now they are gone where caution goes with the wind. It’s clear.” On Sunday, Andrew Torba, CEO of the right-wing social networking site Gab, urged voters to support Pennsylvania Republican gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano, who has espoused Christian nationalist views and highlighted the Jewish faith of his opponent, Josh Shapiro. . in anti-Semitic terms. “When a Jew embraces his faith in the campaign it is ‘amazing and brave,’” Torba wrote. “When a Christian does it, it’s ‘dangerous and extreme.’ “ And groups linked to former Trump adviser Stephen Miller have bombarded voters with ads and flyers in recent days, arguing that the Democratic Party is “anti-white” for efforts aimed at helping Black Americans. Other messages were aimed at Asian and Latino voters, arguing that Democrats are missing them. “We’re in this last 72-hour window, and these last 72 hours are about activating the base,” said Kevin Madden, a former adviser to Mitt Romney during Romney’s 2012 GOP presidential campaign. “It’s all things red meat. There is a category of political culture that is going to take place on election day.” Democrats, by contrast, are emphasizing centrist messages in the final days of the campaign. “Given the states we’re talking about — New Hampshire, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Nevada — it’s smart for campaigns to lean on surrogates with the broadest appeal,” said Liz Smith, a Democratic strategist. “They understand that to win this election, they have to get out to the base, yes, but they also have to talk to voters who are in the middle and on the fence.” Smith added that former President Barack Obama, who has been on a big campaign tour in recent days, along with the likes of Klobuchar and Buttigieg are useful to Democrats because “they’re not going to alienate the swing voters that these candidates need to cross the finish line.” Klobuchar, who raised her profile among Democratic voters with her 2020 presidential bid, has made campaign stops in 15 states, including marquee races in Arizona, Nevada, Georgia and Pennsylvania. Her message focused on democratically lowering prescription drug prices and protecting Social Security and Medicare. Buttigieg held 14 events over the weekend in Michigan, New Hampshire and Nevada. He talked about the economy, calling this year’s midterm elections a “cost-of-living election.” Democrats even looked across the aisle for help: Former Rep. Jim Greenwood, a Republican, appeared at a rally for Shapiro and Senate candidate John Fetterman in Pennsylvania. High-profile liberals in the party, such as Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY) have not shown up in major races. A representative for Ocasio-Cortez noted that she appeared at a youth rally in California last month and has voiced her support for Hochul. In recent days, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has been a surrogate on the campaign trail, holding rallies in key states but mostly not appearing with the candidates on the ballot. Sanders appeared at a rally in Madison, Washington, on Friday afternoon, hours after Democratic Senate candidate Mandela Barnes, who is seeking to unseat Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), made a campaign stop in the liberal city. Sanders urged a crowd of about 1,000 to vote for Barnes, but did not mention Gov. Tony Evers, a Democrat who is also in a tight race. A Sanders aide said that because the events were sponsored by an outside group, the candidates could not appear under campaign finance laws. At least one candidate is taking a do-it-yourself approach. Asked who in the Democratic Party he’d like to stick with for him in his Senate bid, Rep. Tim Ryan of Ohio said he’s not campaigning with anyone. Musician Dave Matthews and former Cleveland Browns quarterback Bernie Kosar were his replacements, he said. “I want to be the face of that. I want to get back on my feet,” Ryan said. “I had the power to throw my own party. I had the power to agree with the Republicans when necessary.” In Gahanna, Ohio, on Sunday, Ryan pointed to a group of seven construction trades workers following his campaign bus on Harley-Davidson motorcycles and said, “I just don’t think Ohio is a place where they follow someone’s support. We’re a very independent state, so they want an independent senator.” Lynskey and McGugan reported from Ohio. Itkowitz reported from Pennsylvania. Ruby Cramer in New York, Sabrina Rodriguez in Hiram, Ga. and Isaac Arnsdorf in Sioux City, Iowa contributed to this report. correction An earlier version of this article misspelled the first name of the Democratic Senate candidate in Pennsylvania. It’s John Fetterman. This article is being corrected.
