TRENTON, NEW JERSEY // Donald Trump will make a surprise visit to traditionally Democratic Minnesota on Sunday while Hillary Clinton has added an extra stop in Michigan to her agenda, as both candidates seek to shore up their positions and weaken one another’s strongholds in the closing stretch of a tight and bitter US presidential campaign.
Mr Trump, the Republican nominee, told supporters in Florida on Saturday that he is “going to Minnesota”. No Republican has won the state of Minnesota since 1972.
“We’re going into what they used to call Democrat strongholds, where we’re now either tied or leading,” Mr Trump said at a rally in Tampa, Florida. “We’re going up to Minnesota, which traditionally has not been Republican at all, and we’re doing phenomenally, we just saw a poll.”
Mr Trump, who has trailed Mrs Clinton throughout most of the general-election campaign, has edged ahead in must-win states including North Carolina and Ohio, according to some polls, and become more competitive in states such as Pennsylvania and Michigan as election day on Tuesday looms.
Mrs Clinton, the former secretary of state, spent Saturday in Florida and Pennsylvania, and planned another appearance in Pennsylvania on Sunday. She will also visit Ohio and New Hampshire. President Barack Obama will campaign for Mrs Clinton in Florida on Sunday and Michigan on Monday. Former President Bill Clinton will hit Michigan on Sunday.
Earlier on Saturday, Mr Trump was rushed off stage by security officers after a false gun scare during a campaign appearance.
The US secret service, which provides security for presidential candidates, said someone in the crowd had shouted “gun” but that no weapon was found.
Mr Trump swiftly resumed his speech in Reno, Nevada after a suspect, who was wrestled to the floor during the incident, was briefly detained then released.
The 70-year-old real estate tycoon reappeared to cheers just minutes after being led away by secret service agents who shielded his body with their own.
“Nobody said it was going to be easy for us, but we will never be stopped, never ever be stopped,” he declared.
“I want to thank the secret service. These guys are fantastic. They don’t get enough credit. They don’t get enough credit. They are amazing people.”
* Bloomberg and Agence France-Presse
