Crowd size at Donald Trump rallies has long been a point of pride for the politician. Barack Obama even mentioned Trump’s crowd size “obsession” in one of the funniest moments at the Democratic National Convention. But as of late, Trump rally attendance has dwindled, as Kamala Harris pointed out at the ABC presidential debate.
Trump took exception to Harris’ suggestion that people were leaving his rallies which often last for hours early out of “exhaustion and boredom.” She then ridiculed the former president for his off-the-rails speeches at said rallies. Trump has mentioned Hannibal Lecter, she said. The orange man even spouted some unhinged nonsense about sharks and batteries in the Las Vegas heat. Trump also overstated the size of the crowd at his inauguration, proving his obsession with crowd size has not wavered. But then again, politics have always seemed like a popularity contest for the former president. (Trump later said his initial inauguration attendance numbers were incorrect.)
Responding to Harris’ rally-size debate dig, Trump said people “don’t leave my rallies,” proving he’s still in denial about what’s happening. Trump said at the debate that Harris busses people in and pays people to attend campaign events. He has also falsely said Harris’ crowd pictures are AI fakes.
As for whether Harris plants her crowd, that rumor seems to have started on social media, and CBS News says it’s not true. Trump, however, had offered to pay attendees at his rallies to hold pro-Trump signs and banners. But he falsely claimed Haitian immigrants are eating dogs and cats in Ohio, so why would we expect him to tell the truth?
So, have Trump’s crowds dwindled?
According to The Wall Street Journal, Harris is right: WSJ reports say people have started leaving Trump rallies early. And in any case, Trump and Harris rally attendance is about the same, The New York Times reported. This time, Trump has also booked smaller venues than where he held rallies in the past. And in some places, Harris’ crowds have beaten Trump’s at the same venues.
In August 2024, Barry Burden, a professor of politics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, remarked to AFP News (via Barron‘s) that Trump supporters have long boasted about the large crowds at his rallies compared to those of Biden in 2020 or Clinton in 2016. However, with Kamala Harris now drawing comparable or larger crowds, the argument that Trump is the favored candidate based on rally size is losing its validity.
But what Harris said must have gotten under Trump’s skin. At the debate, he countered by claiming that people don’t attend her rallies because there’s no reason to, asserting that his rallies were the biggest and most incredible in political history, driven by people’s desire to reclaim their country. Trump, however, failed to mention the other and more important part of what Harris added — who actually encouraged people to attend Trump rallies to hear the bizarre stuff he rambles on about. “I will tell you the one thing you will not hear him talk about is you,” Harris said. She then emphasized her commitment to prioritizing the needs of the citizens, promising to be a president who puts them first.