If Donald Trump is to win Ohio, he’ll need the support of disenchanted Democrats.
The state’s northeast corner is where he hopes to find them.
In a speech set for 7 p.m. Monday, Trump will likely bring his populist, America-first views to thousands of locals gathered inside James A. Rhodes Arena at the University of Akron.
The billionaire is expected to land at Akron-Canton Airport earlier in the day, fresh off campaign stops in Virginia, another swing state, and Michigan, which like Ohio has seen good-paying factory jobs disappear by the tens of thousands.
The balance of the national election could very well be decided in these battleground states, which are now receiving regular visits from Trump and Democratic rival Hillary Clinton.
Local Democrats, meanwhile, plan to hold an anti-Trump news conference at 3:15 p.m. Monday at the nearby Summit County Democratic Party headquarters, 438 Grant St. Speakers will include Summit County Executive Ilene Shapiro, Akron Mayor Dan Horrigan, state Rep. Emilia Sykes and small-business owner Gwen Rosenberg.
Clinton campaign spokesman Harrell Kirstein also said his boss is “absolutely” planning to stop here, “although we don’t have anything on the schedule yet.”
Lots of attention
Northeast Ohio, on the whole, has favored Democratic candidates in federal elections while Ohio, a crystal ball in presidential elections, has accurately picked the winner in all but one election since 1944.
Trump hopes to flip these local Democrats by arguing he can reverse what he terms bad trade deals, lax immigration enforcement and rigged politics that have held them down economically.
Swing state polls, at this point, show Clinton ahead but by the slimmest of margins in Ohio. And with the state seeing the first competing million-dollar political ad buys from each candidate, Ohioans are taking notice of all the attention.
“It’s interesting. They’re spending a lot of time in Ohio, both of them,” said Hugh Alpeter, a Trump loyalist who doesn’t trust the polls or the media. Trump is a truth-teller and the anti-politician, said Alpeter, who is hosting out-of-town visitors Monday and can’t attend the rally.
Tale of two campaigns
While Trump fills coliseums, Clinton has preferred factories and schools, speaking to smaller crowds.
Both candidates have traveled to Columbus and Youngstown in the past month. And both are scheduled to speak next week in Cincinnati at an annual gathering of the American Legion.
Each campaign has opened or added offices in Ohio, including headquarters in Wallhaven, over the past month.
Political observers expect the candidates and their surrogates to blanket Ohio from now until Nov. 8.
“Both presidential candidates making multiple trips to Ohio in a short period of time accentuates Ohio’s importance in each candidate’s path to success,” said Danielle Sarver Coombs, a Kent State University professor.
During his appearance Monday in Akron, Trump will likely make the usual Rust Belt pitch to the downtrodden workers of Northeast Ohio, who have seen manufacturing shrivel in the corner of a state that once flourished on good factory jobs, Coombs said.
The KSU professor also suspects Trump will repeat his claims that Democratic policies have failed inner-city residents.
“Monday we should hear messages appealing to independents and Democrats who are disenchanted,” Coombs said. “I think that’s the strategy in Ohio.”
Planning to attend?
Ahead of the Trump event, parking lots and streets near Rhodes Arena will be closed.
The lots closest to the arena will be reserved. Public parking is available in the lot at the northeast corner of Spicer and Carroll streets or off Exchange Street, directly across from Grant Street. Campus employees must vacate lot 13 at the corner of Carroll and Spicer streets by 10 a.m.
Carroll Street in front of the arena and Vine Street alongside InfoCision Stadium will be closed.
The Trump team has advised attendees to arrive early for security checks. “Homemade signs, banners, professional cameras with a detachable lens, tripods, monopods, selfie sticks, backpacks or large bags” will not be permitted, the campaign said.
Campus rules also prohibit concealed weapons. Open carry is allowed on campus, though the Secret Service has prohibited all weapons at political events.
The Secret Service and other officials refused to release details about Trump’s itinerary on Monday.
Doug Livingston can be reached at 330-996-3792 or dlivingston@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow on Twitter: @ABJDoug.