Climate
Why extreme heat is making campaign rallies more dangerous
Dozens of people have been hospitalized at Trump rallies as intense heat complicates a hallmark of campaigning: outdoor events.


People wait in the heat for former president Donald Trump to arrive at a rally in Mesa, Ariz., on Oct. 9, 2022. (Joshua Lott/The Washington Post)

By Maxine Joselow
August 29, 2024 at 5:00 a.m. EDT

At least 78 attendees of former president Donald Trump’s rallies have been hospitalized for heat-related illnesses in the past three months, according to news reports and local fire officials interviewed by The Washington Post.

In addition, an attendee of Vice President Kamala Harris’s rally in Wisconsin this month appeared to suffer from heat stroke, prompting a pause in the programming.

The incidents underscore how climate change, which is making heat waves longer and more extreme, is complicating plans for outdoor events of all kinds. Such rallies have become a hallmark of campaigning, especially in swing states in the sweltering Sun Belt and the unseasonably warm Midwest.

Both presidential campaigns have provided water and coordinated with medics to help supporters cool off. But the two candidates have staked out vastly different positions on climate policy and heat regulations for employers.

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An attendee cools off before a Trump rally on June 9 in Las Vegas. (Eric Thayer for The Washington Post)

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Sabrina Rodriguez contributed to this report.

By Maxine Joselow
Maxine Joselow is a staff writer who covers climate change and the environment. Twitter