ST. CLOUD – With easy access to rural and urban voters from both parties, St. Cloud has become a popular place to support candidates in the U.S. presidential election.
Former President Donald Trump is the latest to plan a visit to central Minnesota. He's scheduled to speak at St. Cloud State University's Herb Brooks National Hockey Center on Saturday at 7 p.m.
Also joining the trip is his running mate, J.D. Vance, a two-year senator from suburban Ohio who some analysts believe was chosen to shore up support in heavily Republican Midwestern states like Wisconsin and Michigan. Led by state elections chair, House Majority Whip and Minnesota 6th Congressional District Representative Tom Emmer, Trump said he plans to set up multiple field offices across Minnesota to turn the State of 10,000 Lakes to a Republican presidential candidate for the first time since Richard Nixon in 1972.
The visit came just a year after presumptive Democratic nominee Kamala Harris, as vice president, visited bus manufacturer New Flyer of America in St. Cloud, where she gave a speech celebrating the bipartisan infrastructure bill's investments in electric vehicles.
President Joe Biden visited the company in 2009 as vice president touting his economic stimulus package.
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St. Cloud State has hosted several visits by voters in presidential elections, but Trump and Vance will be the first presidential candidates to address voters from the university's hockey arena. The arena, which has increased floor seating capacity from about 6,000 to 8,000, is also available for public rental. The university's website lists a fee of $250 per hour, but this “may be adjusted to accommodate different expectations for set-up and other logistics that require staff assistance,” said Brandi Yale, the university's vice president for public affairs.
History of St. Cloud State University Division I Hockey Arena
The Herb was built in 1989 as the home of the Huskies hockey team and named for former men's coach and U.S. Olympic legend Herb Brooks. Brooks and former South Carolina State University president Brendan J. McDonald, for whom the arena's main rink is named, oversaw the university's program's transition to Division I hockey in 1986.
The National Hockey Center currently hosts games, camps, and practices for the St. John's University hockey team and many youth teams. It also hosts on-ice events such as concerts and graduations. Prior to the 2013-14 season, the facility was expanded with a multi-million dollar addition of a new entrance atrium and improved team and fan amenities, with subsequent improvements to training facilities and video boards. The building reportedly regularly accommodates more than 4,000 fans for winter weekend games and has accommodated more than 7,000 fans in the past.
The St. Cloud State men's team is consistently ranked as one of the best in college hockey, competing in a regional championship in 2023 and finishing as runner-up in its only NCAA championship in 2021. And the SCSU women's team just finished with a .500 winning percentage for the second straight year for the first time after more than a decade of being sub-.500 in the nation's toughest conference.
St. Cloud State University will provide “several” event staff, but the Trump campaign will be handling ticket sales and parking. Security is being coordinated by multiple law enforcement agencies. Yale said Chartwells Catering will be handling concessions.
Which presidents and vice presidents have come to St. Cloud?
In 2012, when Biden and then-President Barack Obama were seeking reelection, former President Bill Clinton spoke at the Atwood Memorial Center in support of their second terms. Nelson Rockefeller, then-Vice President in the Gerald Ford administration, visited the county in 1975 to attend the Minnesota Republican Party Convention at Stewart Hall, and in November 1966, Waverly native Hubert Humphrey visited Stearns County for the second time that year, answering policy questions from the area's brightest students two days before the midterm elections. In May, he planted a tree at the dedication of St. John's University's Alcuin Library.
Before his election, President Dwight Eisenhower (Republican) visited St. Cloud in 1952 to crown SCSU's Homecoming Queen and speak at the Stearns County Courthouse. Adlai Stevenson's running mate, Alben Barkley, also visited St. Cloud in October of that year and gave a broadcast street rally from St. Cloud Technical High School.
Both Bushes have stopped in St. Cloud: President Ronald Reagan's then-Vice President George H. W. Bush spoke at the Holiday Inn on behalf of 7th District Congressional candidate Arlan Stangeland in 1986, and in 2006, President George W. Bush held a rally at Dick Putz Field before a crowd of more than 13,000.
Former Vice President and Democratic Senator from Minnesota, Walter Mondale, also campaigned for Congressional candidate Marv Hanson in the 7th Congressional District in 1988.
Trump and Vance held a rally in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Wednesday. Vance has three more events scheduled for next week in Nevada and Arizona.
Where are Trump and Harris in the polls?
After Biden dropped out of the race on Sunday, pollsters scrambled to compile data supporting Harris. Data released Wednesday showed Trump leading Harris by 3 percentage points or less in most national polls. Harris' numbers generally outperform Biden's, with NPR/PBS/Marist reporting that 87% of respondents thought Biden's decision to drop out was the right one.
Trump still leads Harris nationally by three points (49% to 46%) in the CNN/SSRS online poll, two points (47% to 45%) in the Morning Consult poll and one point (46% to 45%) in the NPR/PBS/Marist poll.
Other polls including those of third-party candidates, such as Economist/YouGov, project Trump to lead Harris with 44% to 41% and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. with 5%. Reuters/Ipsos has Harris leading with 42% to Trump with 38% and Kennedy Jr. with 8%. The group's previous poll, conducted July 15-16, had Trump and Harris tied in a hypothetical race.
The most recent Minnesota poll was released in June, before Biden's campaign had ended. Emerson College reported on June 20 that Biden and Trump were expected to win a close race, with 45% of the vote. Prior to that, on June 10, Mason Dixon had Biden leading 45% to 41%. Biden won Minnesota by more than 7% in 2020.
Contact reporter Reid Glenn at rglenn@gannett.com.
