Tide turns for Trump favorite in key Senate race

It is a relief for Trump, whose endorsement record will be closely scrutinized in the future. One of his endorsed Senate candidates dropped out of the race in Pennsylvania, and another in Alabama, where the former president pulled his endorsement from a congressman.

One of the first major tests of his clout within the party will be the May 17 GOP primary in North Carolina.

At a Saturday rally in eastern North Carolina, Trump said he was proud of Budd. We have to vote. Make sure you vote.

Trump teased an unnamed poll he said he had seen earlier in the day that showed Budd with a 17-point lead in the primary.

Trump said that it was a big lead.

Budd's surge coincides with the Club for Growth pouring money into the Republican primary to support him. The congressman now has the support of one of the state's most popular Republicans, Lieutenant Gov. Mark Robinson.

Robinson said that the party needs to come together and send a strong message.

Robinson's endorsement of Budd comes after the popular lieutenant governor traveled with and publicly praised one of Budd's GOP opponents. Robinson said at an event last month that Walker was going all the way to the top and that he would do all he could to help him.

Despite efforts by Trump and his allies to get him to drop out, Walker has stayed in the race. In a statement to POLITICO Sunday, Walker said he was offered several deals this past week to get out of the Senate race if he agreed to appear at the rally and endorse Budd. He wouldn't say what he was offered, or who it was.

I didn't play this game in D.C. so I declined their offer.

Budd's campaign said they haven't spoken to Walker.

The trajectory of Budd's campaign has been different from that of Brooks, who received Trump's endorsement last year for a Senate primary.

Before Trump withdrew his support in late March, Brooks failed to pull ahead in the polls. Trump said that the congressman's comments about Republicans needing to move on from the 2020 election was the reason he was withdrawing his support.

Last week, a super PAC supporting Walker sent a video to Republican primary voters saying that Trump had received 7 million fewer votes than Biden and that Joe Biden was the legitimate president. Budd's comments, made during an October interview with the Associated Press, failed to gain traction in the news or receive a public reaction from Trump.

Budd said in an interview that the recent surge in support and enthusiasm for his campaign could be attributed to the state's congressional redistricting issues being resolved, and more certainty about the date of the primary.

Budd said that North Carolinas are starting to focus on the race.

We have a lot of work to do. We want to be modest. We want to work hard and stay focused over the next 38 days. The real race is in November.

The Republican Senate nominee will likely face a former supreme court justice who cleared the Democratic field months ago.

Walker's campaign had solicited volunteers to take part in voter outreach in Greensboro earlier in the day.

The race is close and will probably be decided by 1 to 2 points, according to an interview with the candidate.

The Club for Growth was trying to buy a Senate seat, the former governor said.

No one from North Carolina knows who this group is or who is paying for it.

The super PAC is expected to break its spending record. The group's ads attacked the moderate Republican who was opposed to Trump.

Budd praised the Club for Growth when he was asked about the claims of the conservative super PAC buying Budd a seat.

Budd said that his opponents were not for those things.

At the Saturday rally, Trump called the Club President a very powerful man.

The Club, which endorsed Rep. Madison Cawthorn and first-time candidate Bo Hines, was endorsed by Trump at the rally.

We’ve got a lot of work ahead. We want to be humble. We want to work hard, we want to stay focused over the next 38 days. We want to get onto the real race, which is in November.

Some Republican activists in the district, including those who attended the rally Saturday, have resisted the candidacy of a man who lives hours away. One of his Republican opponents, DeVan Barbour, lined the rally entrance road with campaign signs and greeted attendees as they arrived.

One Barbour supporter was asked to move from his bleacher seat on the stage to behind the podium. Dale Lands said when he asked security staff why he was being instructed to move, the security guard cited comments Lands made in a recent POLITICO story about local efforts to stop Hines from winning the Republican nomination.

The crowd responded with chants of "build that wall" and "Joe must go" during Budd's speech.

The event Saturday helped to rally support for Budd. It was like flipping a light switch when Trump announced he would be holding a rally in the state.

Budd's campaign had held off on grassroots organizing until it was clear when North Carolina would hold its primary, but in recent weeks has established a volunteer network in all 100 counties of the state.