Quote:
Originally Posted by DaveinMtAiry
I'm sure politicians know what they are doing but I always wondered what good rallies did. Of all the people there how many were undecided? My guess is a handful, the vast majority have made up their minds months ago. So my guess is they aren't there to swing voters, maybe that's never been the intention. They seem more like a pep rally to me, and of course they get coverage on the news which is a good thing. But judging anything based on turnout and enthusiasm is kind of silly. They are big supporters, of course they will turn out and be enthusiastic.
This goes for both sides by the way, not just saying it's Trump's rallies.
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As you suggest, the attendees are strongly predisposed to vote for the headline candidate. They're the most enthused ones who don't much encouragement to get out and vote. The rally is often more about getting them to be "ambassadors" that encourage others who may be leaning towards the candidate, but who aren't terribly enthusiastic about it, to get out and vote. Other objectives can be to build enthusiasm for down-ticket candidates from the same party, and, as you mentioned, to get positive news coverage.