Presidential nominees typically have plenty of down ticket candidates hoping to ride their coattails, but Politico reports it had trouble finding many Republicans who say they want to hit the stump with Donald Trump.
Out of 50 candidates for the U.S. House and Senate and governorships in competitive races contacted by the website, only a "handful" said they would like to campaign with the business mogul. Others either said no or didn't answer.
Those least enamored of the prospect were Colorado Rep. Mike Coffman, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and Nebraska House candidate Don Bacon. Coffman and Bacon are both in tough races. Rubio, who ran against Trump in the primaries, has endorsed his former foe, but says he will wait-and-see on any joint appearances.
Candidates in Democratic states targeted by Trump are even less enthusiastic.
Illinois Rep. Bob Dold has said he won't vote for or support Trump, and three GOP House candidates in Trump's home state of New York said they don't plan to campaign with the White House nominee.
On the flip side, in North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory and Sen. Richard Burr both attended a rally by Trump and his running mate Mike Pence.
Trump has the lowest poll numbers of any recent Republican nominee and has made several comments that have caused other Republicans to distance themselves from him. The most recent incident was this weekend's counterattack on Khizr and Ghazala Khan, whose son, a Muslim American U.S. Army captain, died in Iraq in 2004.
Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton also has high negatives, but has found people in her party far more likely to say they'll campaign with her, according to Politico.
"Of about 50 Democratic candidates for House, Senate and governors who were contacted, nearly half said they’d want to hit the trail with their presidential nominee," the website reported.
© 2024 Newsmax. All rights reserved.