A top Trump volunteer in Massachusetts is out after sending an email on Sunday evening warning “the campaign has determined that New Hampshire is no longer a battleground state” and urging supporters to put their efforts into Pennsylvania instead.
Tom Mountain, who had served as one of several vice chairs for the Trump in Massachusetts, wrote “the campaign has determined that New Hampshire is no longer a battleground state,” and advised supporters to instead direct their attention to Pennsylvania, the Boston Globe reported in an exclusive.
“(T)he Dems’ campaign shakeup from Biden to Harris led our campaign to shift strategy to other winnable battleground states,” Mountain wrote in an email to Trump volunteers in the state. “So for those who were active in the NH ground campaign in 2016 and 2020, and expected to do the same after Labor Day, the simple question is… what are we to do?” Mountain wrote. “GO TO PENNSYLVANIA. The nearest battleground state. This is a must-win state. If we lose Pennsylvania we lose the election.”
Mountain wrote in the email “Trump was ‘sure to lose by an even higher margin’ in New Hampshire than in 2016 and 2020, citing ‘campaign data/research.’ He claimed resources would be suspended and the campaign would not send Trump or high-profile surrogates such as his sons. The email was obtained by the Globe and confirmed with multiple recipients.”
538 has New Hampshire +7 for Kamala Harris as of September 2.
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Although Mountain has been a vice chair for Trump in Massachusetts, after his email, a senior advisor to the Trump campaign said he “will no longer have any involvement” in the campaign.
The Trump campaign sought to allay concerns raised by Mountain by saying his email wasn’t true and that he was a mere volunteer and therefore not privy to campaign data and strategy.
They say they are keeping a presence on the ground in the Granite State, although the Globe noted that the RNC wouldn’t answer questions about any plans for campaign events in New Hampshire, or what resources it’s sending there, if any, observing that while Kamala Harris is expected to visit the state this week, Trump hasn’t been there since January, “and it has been months since the state has had a visit from a top surrogate, such as North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum in April.
As of July 31, an Emerson College Polling/WHDH survey of New Hampshire voters found “50% of voters support Vice President Kamala Harris and 46% support former president Donald Trump. Four percent of voters are undecided. When undecided voters are asked which candidate they lean toward, Harris’ total support increases to 52% and Trump 48%. With third party candidates on the ballot, Harris leads Trump 48% to 41%; 6% support Robert Kennedy Jr., 1% support Jill Stein.”
These numbers put Mountain’s email into context and lend it some credence. We will see if the Trump campaign send any high profile surrogates and if the RNC sends resources to the state.
For information on voting in New Hampshire, check out Vote411 or register to vote at Vote.Org.
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