President Donald Trump scrapped in-person campaign events in Kansas and Iowa on Thursday and will address supporters by telephone instead, closing the midterm push with tele-rallies rather than travel.
The Kansas stop had been set for Salina on Saturday, the Iowa event for Dubuque on Sunday. The Republican National Committee said later on Thursday that the Iowa rally was also off, ABC News reported.
Speaking to reporters, Trump said he did not feel obliged to appear in Kansas, where Republican Senator Roger Marshall faces Democrat Adam Hamilton in a closer-than-expected race. "He is doing very well," Trump said of Marshall. "We are going to have a strong Tuesday night."
Trump's political operation, MAGA Inc., said it would stage phone-in rallies featuring the president across at least 19 states before Election Day, Kansas and Iowa among them, according to CNA. ABC News put the number at more than 15 states.
The travel schedule since Oct. 1 has been heavy. Trump has held 25 rallies in 19 states, many of them in rural, reliably Republican territory. Both Kansas and Iowa also have competitive races for governor.
Trump has acknowledged the pace is wearing on his voice. Hoarse at an event in Mississippi on Monday, he said: "God didn't make your vocal cords to do a rally every day."
He is still due on the road before the Nov. 3 vote, including a Florida rally on Friday. After campaigning in South Carolina for Senator Darline Graham on Thursday, he brushed aside a Reuters reporter's question about fatigue. "You've been following me for two weeks," Trump said. "I feel perfect," he added, The Straits Times reported.
Republicans are defending narrow majorities in the Senate and House in Tuesday's elections.