Former U.S. President Trump held a campaign rally on Thursday evening in the heavily Democratic South Bronx neighborhood of New York City. The event, which took place in Crotona Park, broke political norms but was a huge success according to Trump’s campaign team, with over 20,000 people in attendance.
The rally in Crotona Park drew a large crowd of supporters. Karoline Leavitt, the national spokesperson for Trump’s 2024 campaign, estimated that approximately 25,000 attendees showed up, far exceeding the initial expectation of 3,500 people. Due to limited park capacity and reception restrictions, many people waited in line for hours at security checkpoints, some even gaining entry after the speeches had already begun.
South Bronx is a deep blue district primarily made up of Latino and African American voters. Participants in the rally included construction workers, security guards, nurses, hairdressers, as well as out-of-state activists, all eager to attend Trump’s first campaign rally in New York City since he became the 45th President of the United States in 2016. The dense crowd suggested that Trump’s support base has become more diverse, including people from various socioeconomic backgrounds and ethnicities.
Trump delivered a speech focused on New York, promising to work with Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul and Democratic Mayor Eric Adams to clean up New York State and City, which includes renovating the subway system, cleaning up parks, addressing homelessness and mental health issues on the streets, and controlling the influx of illegal immigrants.
“We are going to make life affordable again for New Yorkers,” he pledged. “We will renovate New York’s subway system, so it doesn’t look like it hasn’t been cleaned since 1932.”
Another key point of Trump’s speech was the issue of violent crime in New York City. He vowed to make the city safer and better for its residents.
“I am here tonight to announce that we will turn the tide in New York City, we will turn it very, very quickly,” Trump vowed. “We will make New York bigger, better, and greater than ever before.”
“If a New Yorker can’t save this city, then nobody can,” the former president, who grew up in New York, declared amidst enthusiastic cheers. “Who says we can’t win New York?”
The exact number of attendees at the rally was difficult to ascertain. While Leavitt estimated one figure, Chris LaCivita, joint campaign manager for Trump’s 2024 campaign, told the New York Post that 20,000 people had registered for the event. However, a law enforcement source informed the New York Post on Friday that approximately 8,000 to 10,000 people attended the rally.