By the numbers: Trump's midterm impact

Even though he’s no longer in office, former President Donald Trump has still had an impact on the midterm elections, fueling Democratic hopes that they could make this election a choice between President Joe Biden and Trump’s GOP.

The former president has played an outsized role in helping pick his party’s nominees in major battlegrounds, wielded his political power in 77 primaries considered competitive by the NBC News Political Unit. Sixty of them won their primaries. 

Trump has backed many candidates who echo his false claims about the 2020 election, with more than 70% of his preferred candidates denying or questioning the 2020 results.

And though his endorsement is still powerful in GOP primaries, Trump has remained unpopular since leaving office. In October’s NBC News poll, 34% of voters said they had positive feelings about Trump, while 55% said they viewed Trump negatively.

For Subscribers

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NBC News polling has also found that an increasing share of Republicans identify more as supporters of the party than Trump, but for a brief decline after the FBI searched Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence. Just 33% say they are primarily a Trump supporter while 59% call themselves a supporter of the Republican Party first.

Until late in the election cycle, Trump had been mostly unwilling to dip into his massive war chest to help his candidates. His PAC, Save America, has transferred a few million dollars to super PACs that have played in some primaries and to some of his preferred candidates, but he was not throwing his largess around.

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSJudge guts noncitizen voting law used in Trump administration’s election push

FOR SUBSCRIBERSWhite House plans travel for Trump in at least 17 states ahead of the midterms

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThe prosecutor at the center of the Cornell maelstrom

FOR SUBSCRIBERSIt’s rarely been harder for people to find new jobs

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCBP leaders cut out of Trump ad buy decision

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAmerican passenger drafted goodbye texts to her family as Flydubai plane plummeted

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation pushes embattled New York prosecutor into national spotlight

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

In late September, close Trump allies launched MAGA Inc., a new super PAC, that began running ads in midterm races. So far, the group is running spots in Senate races in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Nevada, Georgia and Arizona, per AdImpact. The group has also launched ads in Michigan’s governor and attorney general races. Trump’s Save America seeded MAGA Inc. with at least $20 million, and the group has also raised more from other donors.

For more on Trump’s impact and other dynamics driving the midterm elections, check out the NBC News Political Unit’s Election Book.