The Republican Party said on Thursday that President Trump had canceled two planned campaign rallies in Iowa and Kansas this weekend, as polls show close races there and the party’s majority control of Congress increasingly in danger.
The Republican National Committee said the rallies were being canceled because Republicans are doing so well in those states that Mr. Trump no longer needed to visit to shore up support, even as Mr. Trump’s approval rating hovers at a record low.
Republican candidates in many red states have seen their margins tighten amid voter frustration over the war in Iran and the cost of living, despite Mr. Trump’s campaigning in some of the most conservative states in the country, often speaking for hours, nearly every day for weeks.
The Republican National Committee confirmed in a statement that the Trump rally in Kansas on Saturday and in Iowa on Sunday were canceled. The Iowa rally was in support of Representative Ashley Hinson, the Republican Senate candidate there who is in a close race for the seat.
While the president insisted that Senator Roger Marshall of Kansas was “doing really well” and no longer needed a rally, a CNN poll published Thursday showed Mr. Marshall down four points to his Democratic rival, Adam Hamilton. Other polls show a tighter race.
The announcement by the Republican Party came hours after Mr. Trump, 80, lashed out at a Reuters reporter who had asked if the president had canceled the Kansas rally because of health issues. Mr. Trump has been holding hours-long rallies nearly every day for weeks. He has faced questions over his health amid signs of fatigue.
“You’ve been following me for two weeks. I feel perfect,” Mr. Trump said to reporters on his way back from a rally in South Carolina. He told the Reuters reporter that “you are sick to ask that question,” adding “you are disgusting. Put yourself in shape. You look like hell.”
The R.N.C. said that Mr. Trump would instead participate in tele-rallies for candidates in those states.
Tele-rallies typically involve the candidate and the president speaking on what is essentially a one-way conference call to anyone who has the provided phone number, with no direct audience participation. Mr. Trump will typically speak for about 5 to 10 minutes before hanging up, allowing him to participate in several of these events in one evening.
Mr. Trump often appears to bask in the adulation that he gets from in-person rallies. And he enjoys riffing off supporters who chime in with their own comments. Speaking in Oklahoma earlier this month, Mr. Trump told the audience that “I’m really here because I love you people.”
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