Leavitt says Trump is defying midterm headwinds as he barnstorms the country to defend narrow Republican majorities

President Donald Trump is determined to defy a challenging midterm political landscape as Republicans fight to defend their narrow majorities in the House and Senate, former White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt has said, describing a president who is barnstorming the country rather than backing down.

In an interview in her home state of New Hampshire this week, Leavitt said the president is defiant, and he always is optimistic, presenting Trump's blunt determination as the core of the Republican strategy for combating negative approval ratings and difficult history.

The GOP is fighting political history, as the party in power in Washington has traditionally lost seats during midterm election years, and defending narrow majorities makes that historical pattern an even sharper threat this cycle.

Republicans also face a challenging campaign climate fuelled by persistent inflation Americans see at the grocery store and high gas prices tied to what polls show is an unpopular war with Iran, alongside Trump's increasingly negative approval ratings.

Leavitt said Trump totally understands that history is not on the Republican side right now if you just frankly look at the history books, but that is not stopping him from going out and barnstorming the country. He has been everywhere this week from North Carolina to South Carolina, she said, and will be in Michigan again this weekend.

Republicans are also facing a low-propensity problem in the midterms: MAGA supporters who do not always vote when Trump is not on the ballot, and turning those voters out is central to the campaign's task.

The president is getting out there and reminding voters what is at stake in this election and why it is so important to get out and vote in the midterms, Leavitt noted, adding that he is being frank and honest with his voters that he knows they do not turn out in midterm cycles, but they need to this time.

Democrats, meanwhile, appear energised as Election Day nears. Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin said recently in a social media post that the Republicans are running scared, increasingly spending more and more money in the reddest of red areas in an attempt to hold on, claiming Democrats have them on the run.

Leavitt, taking a page from the GOP midterm playbook, argued that this election is a contrast between commonsense Republican conservative candidates who believe in cutting taxes, securing the border and putting American citizens over illegal aliens, and radical extreme liberal candidates, some of the most radical Democrats ever to run in the country's history.

Pointing to the GOP's fundraising superiority over Democratic Party groups, Leavitt added that Republicans have a huge cash advantage across the country, and are making sure voters understand again what is at stake in this election and why it is so important that they win.

As the November 3 general election approaches, Trump is travelling to multiple cities campaigning for Republican candidates. Whether that barnstorming can overcome historical midterm headwinds, inflation and falling approval ratings by turning out MAGA voters who usually skip midterm cycles will go a long way to deciding the fate of the Republicans' narrow House and Senate majorities.