By Nathan Layne, Nandita Bose and Steve Holland
DALLAS, Sept 9 (Reuters) - Republicans opened their unusual midterm convention on Wednesday with plenty of praise for Donald Trump and scathing attacks on "dangerous" Democrats, placing a risky bet that the president's brand can energize core backers despite his broad unpopularity.
The two-day gathering in Dallas, where Trump will deliver a primetime address on both evenings, underscores the extent to which Republicans' fortunes are tethered to Trump and serves as a showcase for their strategy ahead of the November 3 midterm elections.
It was unclear whether the made-for-television event would successfully move the needle among the crucial swing voters who opinion polls show have drifted away from Republicans amid rising frustration over the economy.
While Republican officials had described the convention as an opportunity to tout Trump's policies, most of the early speakers focused largely on attacking Democrats on topics such as transgender women in sports and border security – political red meat for the base.
Issues that voters have consistently cited as top concerns, the Iran war and the cost of living, received comparatively less attention.
The party that controls the White House historically loses congressional seats in midterm elections, and Trump's popularity has sagged as the war and his tariff policies have increased energy costs and consumer prices.
Alabama state Representative Ernie Yarbrough, a convention attendee, said Trump needs to give voters a clearer sense of how long the war in Iran could last and what the administration's aims are.
"People want to feel like we’re not getting stuck in an endless cycle," he said.
DEMOCRATS PORTRAYED AS 'SOCIALISTS' AND 'COMMUNISTS'
A parade of speakers called Democrats "socialists" and "communists," echoing one of Trump's favorite attack lines following a handful of victories by democratic socialists in Democratic primary elections. Democrats are "dangerous, radical and weird," said Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina, the chairman of the party's Senate campaign arm.
The event was so centered on the president that Republican National Committee Chairman Joe Gruters informally dubbed it "Trumpapalooza," a nod to the popular Lollapalooza music festival.
The focus on Trump offered a tough choice for vulnerable Republicans facing difficult elections who may need to distance themselves from the president to broaden their appeal but cannot afford to alienate Trump's most committed supporters.
Many Republicans in competitive races skipped the convention, including Representative Tom Barrett of Michigan, Senator Dan Sullivan of Alaska and Senator Susan Collins of Maine, all facing strong Democratic challengers this fall.
Some, however, elected to travel to Dallas. At least 16 candidates in competitive House and Senate races were scheduled to speak, according to the RNC schedule. Among those who spoke on Wednesday were Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a close Trump ally who is locked in a tough Senate race with Democratic lawmaker James Talarico, and Ohio Senator Jon Husted, who faces former Senator Sherrod Brown.
More than two hours into the program, the 21,000-seat arena's upper rows were still empty, while seats along the sides were only sparsely filled.
FETTERMAN MAKES SURPRISE APPEARANCE
Wednesday's program also featured a surprise pretaped video from Democratic U.S. Senator John Fetterman, who introduced his fellow senator from Pennsylvania, Republican Dave McCormick, as his "great friend" while declaring he would work with Trump to protect the state's steel industry.
Fetterman's extraordinary participation appeared likely to emphasize the ideological divides plaguing the Democratic Party ahead of the midterms. Fetterman has denied speculation that he may leave the party.
The convention's stakes are high for both parties. With the elections less than two months away, Republicans face the prospect of losing control of at least one chamber of Congress, with public polling showing Democrats more motivated to vote and Trump's approval ratings deeply underwater.
With no official party business on the agenda, the gathering resembled a Trump campaign rally more than a traditional party convention, which is held every four years to nominate presidential and vice presidential candidates.
Trump was scheduled to deliver the keynote address on Wednesday and then deliver the closing remarks after Vice President JD Vance speaks on Thursday evening.
A CHANCE TO RALLY THE BASE
The convention faces stiff competition for viewers with the start of the NFL season, with opening night coinciding with a Super Bowl rematch between the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks and Thursday's program overlapping with a matchup between the San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams.
Still, after months of negative headlines over the Iran war and inflation, many Republicans see the gathering as their best chance to promote candidates, draw contrasts with Democrats on affordability, immigration and healthcare, and energize a Republican electorate expressing less enthusiasm about voting than Democrats, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll.
Talako Kostini, a 59-year-old Republican from south Texas, said the convention was worth trying because parties in power often struggle in midterm elections.
Kostini, who wore a cowboy hat like many of the Texans in attendance, said most convention-goers were likely already committed to voting. But he believed the influencers gathering in Dallas could help energize less frequent voters who often sit out midterms.
"I think it will have a multiplicative effect," he said.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries dispatched four Democratic lawmakers to Dallas as part of the party's counter-programming effort.
"Americans are drowning in the failed Republican economy," Jeffries said in a statement. "Rather than taking a single step to lower costs, MAGA extremists are partying with their super-rich donors in Dallas."
(Reporting by Nathan Layne, Nandita Bose, Steve Holland and David Morgan; Writing by Joseph Ax and Nathan Layne; Editing by Ross Colvin and Howard Goller)
