The Republican Party held an unusual midterm convention in Dallas last week, where President Donald Trump and other prominent GOP officials spoke in hopes of building enthusiasm and support ahead of the November elections.

The two-day gathering at the American Airlines Center was the first midterm convention of its kind for the Republican Party. Unlike a traditional presidential nominating convention, there was no official party business or nominations. Instead, the event was designed to energize Republican voters and unite the party behind its candidates and broader message heading into the midterm elections.

Trump, who spoke during both nights of the convention, repeatedly emphasized the importance of Republicans turning out to vote in the midterms — elections in which incumbent presidents and the parties in power have historically faced significant challenges.

“I’m asking you to pretend that I’m on the ballot,” the president implored attendees on the first day.

On the second night, Trump delivered another direct appeal to Republican voters.

“You know what happens if you don’t vote? You go to hell,” he said.

Trump also urged attendees at one point to “cheat like hell” to keep Republicans in control of Congress.

The president also used the event to promote Republican candidates, including Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, the GOP nominee in the state’s closely watched Senate race against outspoken LGBTQ rights supporter James Talarico.

“He may not dress right, he may not talk exactly perfectly, and he may not be the best-looking guy I’ve ever seen, but he’s the greatest attorney general in America and he deserves to be your next senator,” Trump said when talking about Paxton.

Among those in attendance were gay Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Rep. Brandon Gill (R-Texas), North Carolina Senate nominee Michael Whatley, and Ohio Republican Sen. Jon Husted.

Both days, there were thousands of empty seats, including almost all of the upper level, despite Trump insisting the arena was “packed” with “thousands” more waiting outside.

The convention’s message frequently emphasized personal and political attacks on Democrats, often over detailed policy discussions. Speakers repeatedly targeted Democratic candidates and progressive figures, with Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed among those mentioned throughout the event.

The first lady was notably absent from the event.

Five RNC officials described the scope of the party’s nationwide “election integrity” effort to Axios. They said strict enforcement of voting laws and preventing noncitizens from registering and voting are top priorities, even as analysts say voter fraud is rare and there is no evidence of any systemic or significant problem.

President Trump also proposed giving American adults $5,000 if Republicans retain control of the House and Senate, a proposal that immediately raised questions about its legality and implementation.

The Republican base has also fractured over several key issues during the last 18 months, including the war in Iran, the handling of the release of the Epstein files, surging gas prices, and rising costs driven by tariffs. The convention was organized as an effort to rally Republicans around the party and motivate turnout despite those divisions and broader concerns heading into the midterms.

A protester carrying a Mexican flag interrupted Vice President JD Vance’s speech on Sept. 10.

“It’s about sending a message to the Democratic Party that if you send your crazies, we’re going to send you packing,” Vance said of the stakes of November’s elections.

More than 100 protesters also marched through downtown Dallas during the RNC Midterm Convention, briefly blocking traffic near the American Airlines Center.

At the convention both nights, an image that can only be described as a thirst trap of Democratic socialist commentator and creator Hassan Piker was shown on the jumbotron, garnering attention on social media.

The social media star posted a video shortly after images of him, abs and all, appeared on the jumbotron, sitting at a desk and completely dumbfounded at the thought that “my meat pic was on the jumbotron at the republican midterm convention.”

Piker has been a frequent target of conservative and Republican figures because of his criticism of the Israel-Palestine war, the war in Iran, and his broader critiques of the establishment and political institutions of both parties. Piker and El-Sayed were two of the most targeted progressive figures during the convention.

Another figure from the other side of the aisle who made an appearance was Democratic Sen. John Fetterman, who in recent months has adopted more conservative positions on some issues and continued to voice strong support for Israel — an issue on which there are divisions within the Democratic Party.

“Yes, I’m a Democrat. Why am I here talking to you today? Because well, I’m a common sense Democrat,” Fetterman said in the prerecorded video that also aired on the American Airlines Center’s jumbotron. “I’m always going to stand with America. I’m always going to reject the extremes and socialism and that anti-American way of life.”

“We’ll work with President Trump to fight and defend the steel way of life right here in the steel valley,” he added.

Fetterman’s prerecorded appearance was a notable moment at an event otherwise dominated by Republican officials and speakers.

Also at the event, accusations began to spread online about alleged Grindr outages in the area of the convention — a juxtaposition with the anti-LGBTQ positions the Republican Party officially reflects and its emphasis on “family values.”

A spokesperson for Grindr told Snopes, “Grindr has not experienced recent outages. Third party sources that often make these claims rely on unreliable data such as self-reporting, while Grindr reports outages directly on its status page.” The status page showed no outages in August or September 2026.

Another person, who goes by the name of Nick Pringle online, garnered over eight million views on an Instagram video in which he claims he was about to start working “undercover as a male escort” at the convention.

In the video, he appears to be in a hotel bathroom and says he will post for the sake of exposing hypocritical Republican lawmakers who have used their power to champion what he described as hateful and divisively anti-LGBTQ legislation.

The Blade reached out to Pringle via Instagram to ask whether he ultimately carried out what he described in the video and whether he had any evidence or additional information to share about his experience at the convention, but did not hear back by the time of publication.

New Hampshire Congressman Chris Pappas on Tuesday won the Democratic primary in the race to succeed retiring U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) in the U.S. Senate.

Pappas defeated Karishma Manzur, who was his primary challenger, by a 61.8-36.1 percent margin.

The gay congressman will face off against former U.S. Sen. John E. Sununu, who defeated former U.S. Sen. Scott Brown in the Republican primary.

“Tonight’s victory sends a clear message that voters are looking for leaders who will fight for their rights, their freedoms, and to be treated with dignity and respect,” said Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson in a statement. 

She campaigned for Pappas in Manchester, New Hampshire’s largest city, on Aug. 30.

“Chris Pappas has delivered results, stood up for equality, and showed up for the people he serves,” said Robinson in her statement. “HRC was proud to mobilize Equality Voters across New Hampshire to help power this win. We don’t have a second to waste between now and November. We look forward to continuing our work with Rep. Pappas as he drives toward victory in November so he can help return a pro-equality majority to the United States Senate.”

A poll the University of New Hampshire Survey Center released on Aug. 26 showed Sununu ahead of Pappas by a 45-43 percent margin if they were to face off in the general election. The margin of error is +/-2.1 percent.

Pappas would become the first openly gay man elected to the U.S. Senate if he were to win in November.

U.S. Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) clinched the Democratic seat for his reelection campaign in Massachusetts’s primary election on Tuesday.

Markey won the deep-blue state with 64.8 percent of the vote, according to NBC News, triumphing over Marine Corps combat veteran and Congressman Seth Moulton, who received 35.2 percent of the vote.

Massachusetts’s primary election, which determined which Democratic candidate will head to the polls to face off against the Republican challenger in November, is being considered a victory for LGBTQ-inclusive policy, as well as for a divisive pro-transgender rights candidate — both things Markey has become an outspoken champion of.

Markey has experience at multiple levels of government, from the state level, where he served three terms in the state House of Representatives, to his federal tenure, including 20 terms in the U.S. House of Representatives and is now serving his second term as a senator. He has become a fixture of a changing Democratic Party in one of the most consistently blue places in the U.S.

This primary — and much of the national discussion surrounding the Senate seat — focused a lot of campaigning power on fighting the growing sentiment, led mostly by Republicans, that the frustration many Americans feel lends itself to an anti-establishment and anti-incumbent attitude.

Markey ran his campaign using his past as a reflection of his commitment to constantly putting his best foot forward for Bay Staters — particularly with apprehension for issues younger and more progressive democrats have been righting for — including Green New Deal and “Medicare for All” while Moulton — who was also elected to federal office prior to this run — campaigned on being younger than Markey, arguing that he was not the same type of established politician.

Moulton also faced backlash for negative comments about trans athletes, sparking criticism for those who did want younger candidate but want for trans rights to be protected.

Markey’s track record of supporting the LGBTQ community is one of the most clear in federal politics, one that has garnered a “100 percent lifetime voting record” on the Human Rights Campaign’s PAC politician review scorecard.

That list of Markey’s actions includes being a cosponsor of the Equality Act, driving landmark legislation to ensure federal protections for LGBTQ Americans, and being one of the most vocal proponents for trans rights in the federal government — specifically in multiple appropriations bills and in the National Defense Authorization Act. He was also the lead sponsor of the Transgender Health Care Access Act and the Transgender Bill of Rights resolution.

Markey first introduced the Transgender Bill of Rights in the Senate in 2023, where it ultimately failed to be brought to law. He reintroduced the legislation this year once again. This was a direct response to the attitude pushed by many conservatives after 2021, when the push to minimize trans rights started to become a key part of their cause and has been constantly propped up by the Trump-Vance administration.

“Massachusetts needs a senator who stands up and fights back, a senator who never forgets who they are fighting for,” Markey said during his victory speech. “That has been the mission of my life, and it always will be.”

Following the calling of the primary, a slew of LGBTQ organizations rallied behind Markey, many pushing his past as an asset that puts his money where his mouth is through advocating for legislation specifically protecting the LGBTQ community.

Tyler Hack, the executive director of the Christopher Street Project, an organization dedicated to pushing for legal protections for trans americans, released a statement following Markey’s win. Hack argued that putting forward such a staunchly pro-trans candidate is a win for the community, especially after endorsing him earlier this year.

“Tonight, anti-trans politics lost. Massachusetts rejected the idea that attacking transgender people is a shortcut to political power. Voters chose a different path: one where equality is not negotiable, cruelty is not courage, and transgender people do not have to disappear for Democrats to succeed.”

The Human Rights Campaign also endorsed him as a candidate earlier this year and issued a statement via its president, Kelley Robinson.

“Ed Markey has spent decades fighting for LGBTQ+ equality, for working people, and for a more livable world,” Robinson said. “He knows why equality matters. He’s stood with us no matter what. We were proud to endorse him this year, and when a pro-equality majority takes back the Senate this fall, we will continue to count on him as a champion for our community.”

Markey is running for reelection against Republican John Deaton in November, where he is expected to win.