#Trump announces first post-White House rally set for June 26 in Ohio

Former President Donald Trump will hold the first of four promised campaign-style rallies in Ohio on June 26 to support a primary challenger to a Republican lawmaker who voted to impeach Trump earlier this year.

The rally will be held at the Lorain County Fairgrounds in the village of Wellington, approximately 40 miles southwest of Cleveland. It will be the first time Trump addresses his supporters in a rally setting since Jan. 6, when he spoke at a “Stop the Steal” event that precipitated a deadly riot at the US Capitol.

A statement from Trump’s Save America PAC said the rally would mark “President Trump’s first of many appearances in support of candidates and causes that further the MAGA agenda and accomplishments of President Trump’s administration.”

The statement specified that the rally will be in support of former Trump adviser Max Miller, who is challenging Rep. Anthony Gonzalez (R-Ohio).

“Max Miller is a wonderful person who did a great job at the White House and will be a fantastic Congressman,” Trump said in endorsing Miller this past February. “He is a Marine Veteran, a son of Ohio, and a true PATRIOT. Current Rep. Anthony Gonzalez should not be representing the people of the 16th district because he does not represent their interest or their heart. Max Miller has my Complete and Total Endorsement!”

Gonzalez was one of 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump following the Jan. 6 riot on a charge of incitement of insurrection.

“The President of the United States helped organize and incite a mob that attacked the United States Congress in an attempt to prevent us from completing our solemn duties as prescribed by the Constitution,” Gonzalez said in a statement explaining his vote.

“During the attack itself, the President abandoned his post while many members asked for help, thus further endangering all present,” Gonzalez added. “These are fundamental threats not just to people’s lives, but to the very foundation of our Republic.”

Last month, the Ohio Republican Party’s central committee censured Gonzalez and the nine other Republicans who voted to impeach Trump and called on Gonzalez to resign. The resolution suggested Gonzalez had “betrayed his constituents” and “knowingly and willfully violated his oath of office” by voting to impeach.

That drew the ire of retiring Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio), who described Gonzalez as “a friend and a dedicated public servant.”

Trump told One America News last month he would hold rallies in Ohio, as well as Georgia, North Carolina and his home state of Florida. Trump won all four battleground states in 2016 and held three of the four in 2020.

The former president previously spoke at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference in February and addressed the North Carolina Republican Party’s convention earlier this month. He has also sat for interviews with various conservative outlets and personalities, most recently chatting with Fox News host Sean Hannity Wednesday night.