Trump says a million people have requested tickets to his Tulsa rally, but it could just be because TikTok users are trolling him
- TikTok users are making videos encouraging people to book free tickets to Trump's rally and not show up.
- The free tickets allow people access to the president's Tulsa, Oklahoma, rally this weekend.
- Trump has publicly said a million people have requested tickets, but it's unclear how many of those people are trolls.
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President Donald Trump has proudly said that a million people have already requested tickets to his Tulsa, Oklahoma, rally this weekend. Many of those people, though, might be trolls.
TikTok users have been making videos encouraging people to register for tickets to his June 20 rally and then not show up. The effort is intended to leave some seats at the venue empty.
"All of those of us that want to see this 19,000 seat auditorium barely filled or completely empty go reserve tickets now and leave him standing alone there on the stage," Mary Jo Laupp said in a video she posted last week.
Laupp, who previously worked on Pete Buttigieg's campaign in Iowa, told CNN that she made the appeal after learning that rally was to be held on Juneteenth, a June 19 holiday commemorating the end of slavery. The decision to hold the rally at a site infamous for one of the worst incidents of race violence in US history prompted outrage, and Trump's campaign ultimately moved it to the following day.
Laupp's video has been liked 625,000 times.
Several other users have posted similar videos, including one that calls on K-pop fans, who are particularly active on social media, to get involved.
Appeals have popped up on Instagram and Twitter, too.
oh no! I just reserved my tickets for 45’s rally on JUNETEENTH in TULSA and completely forgot that I have to mop my windows that day! now my seats will be EMPTY! I hope that everyone who sees this doesn’t make the same mistake I did! We want to see all 19,000 seats full! ???? pic.twitter.com/R9xVM3BXay
— ♏️ (@dianafrompluto) June 12, 2020
As clever as the stunt appears, the effect it will have on rally turnout will likely be minimal on non-existent.
Despite the 20,000 venue capacity, the Trump campaign has not put a limit on how many people can request tickets. While the registration page tells users they can request up to two tickets, those who do are not actually securing themselves a seat. Access to the rally will still be first come, first serve.
Those signing up for tickets are just turning over their cellphone number and feeding the campaign's data collection efforts.
When registrations for the rally passed 800,000, Trump campaign manager Brad Parscale described it as the "biggest data haul and rally signup of all time by 10x."
"Leftists do this all the time. They think if they sign up for tickets that will leave empty seats," Erin Perrine, a Trump campaign spokeswoman, told CNN, "Not the case at all. Always way more ticket requests than seats available at a rally. All they are doing is giving us access to their contact information."
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