JD Vance rallies Republicans at CHI Aviation in Howell, one week before Michigan’s Nov. 3 election

HOWELL, Mich. — Vice President JD Vance brought the Republican midterm campaign to Livingston County on Tuesday, Oct. 27, headlining a rally inside a hangar at CHI Aviation in Howell Township exactly one week before Michigan’s Nov. 3 election.

Hundreds of supporters lined up for the event, many in “Make America Great Again” caps and some in “Vance 2028” hats, MLive reported from the scene. Nathaniel Baker of Lansing, wearing a Vance hat and T-shirt, summed up why he came: “I’m a fan.” Secret Service agents and local police kept a heavy presence around the hangar, and media access was limited.

Doors opened at 10 a.m. and the program began at noon, according to the Republican National Committee’s event page. The rally was hosted by the Trump 47 Committee, the RNC and other GOP groups, the Livingston Daily reported, with Vance scheduled to speak at 1:55 p.m.

Detailed accounts of what Vance said inside the hangar were not yet available when this story was published at mid-afternoon. We will update this story with his remarks.

Why Howell. Howell and Brighton sit in Michigan’s 7th Congressional District, a Lansing-centered seat that also reaches into parts of Oakland and Genesee counties and is one of the most closely watched House races in the country. Republican Rep. Tom Barrett of Charlotte, an Army veteran who won the open seat in 2024, faces Democrat William “Will” Lawrence of East Lansing, a community organizer and Sunrise Movement co-founder endorsed by Sen. Bernie Sanders and Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed, FOX 2 Detroit reported. Republicans hold the U.S. House 218 seats to 214, according to FOX 2, so a handful of seats like this one could decide the majority.

Livingston County is also friendly ground for the top of the GOP ticket. In the 2024 U.S. Senate race, Mike Rogers carried Howell with close to 60% of the vote to Elissa Slotkin’s just under 40%, according to an analysis by WXYZ-TV. Rogers, a former congressman from White Lake Township, is running again this year for the open seat left by retiring Democratic Sen. Gary Peters.

Before he landed. Speaking to reporters on the tarmac before flying to Michigan, Vance went after El-Sayed, accusing him of engaging in “explicitly anti-white racial hatred,” Newsweek reported. Vance called Rogers “fundamentally a decent guy” and, asked about President Donald Trump’s reported description of El-Sayed as a “jihadist,” said the Democrat had “a lot of weird friends,” according to Newsweek. El-Sayed’s campaign had not responded publicly to those remarks in the coverage we reviewed by Tuesday afternoon.

A busy week in Michigan. The stop was Vance’s third midterm visit to Michigan, after Sterling Heights in August and a rally near Monroe on Oct. 15, MLive reported. It came two days after President Trump packed McMorran Place in Port Huron and former President Barack Obama campaigned with El-Sayed in Detroit. Howell residents interviewed by WXYZ before the visit were split on whether such stops change minds; one said most voters “made up their minds a long time ago.”

CHI Aviation, a veteran-owned helicopter and fixed-wing airlift company, is headquartered at the Livingston County Airport on Bowen Road, according to the company. The county-owned airport, also known as Spencer J. Hardy Airport, has easy access to I-96, M-59 and US-23, according to Livingston County.

Michigan voters can request an absentee ballot by mail or online through Friday, Oct. 30, and in person at their clerk’s office through 4 p.m. Monday, Nov. 2. Early in-person voting runs through Sunday, Nov. 1, and polls are open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 3. You can still register in person at your clerk’s office with proof of residency through 8 p.m. on Election Day. Check your sample ballot at the Michigan Voter Information Center.

Sources:
MLive, “Hundreds line up to hear JD Vance speak at Livingston County rally ahead of midterms,” Oct. 27, 2026, https://www.mlive.com/politics/2026/10/hundreds-line-up-to-hear-jd-vance-speak-at-livingston-county-rally-ahead-of-midterms.html
Livingston Daily, “JD Vance will visit CHI Aviation in Howell on Tuesday,” Oct. 26, 2026, https://www.livingstondaily.com/story/news/politics/elections/2026/10/26/vice-president-jd-vance-to-visit-chi-aviation-in-howell-michigan/92442168007/
Republican National Committee events page, “Midterm Rally in Howell, Michigan featuring Special Guest Speaker Vice President JD Vance,” https://events.gop.com/events/midterm-rally-in-howell-mi-vance
FOX 2 Detroit, “JD Vance in Howell, Michigan: Watch live,” Oct. 27, 2026, https://www.fox2detroit.com/news/jd-vance-live-watch-michigan-tom-barrett-william-lawrence
Newsweek, “JD Vance Accuses Abdul El-Sayed of Anti-White Racism Before Michigan Rally,” Oct. 27, 2026, https://www.newsweek.com/jd-vance-accuses-abdul-el-sayed-of-anti-white-racism-before-michigan-rally-12624731
WXYZ-TV, “Vance to campaign for Rogers in Howell as Michigan’s Senate candidates pursue different turnout strategies,” Oct. 26, 2026, https://www.wxyz.com/news/national-politics/america-votes/vance-to-campaign-for-rogers-in-howell-as-michigans-senate-candidates-pursue-different-turnout-strategies
CHI Aviation, company website (headquarters, Livingston County Airport, 3679 Bowen Road), https://chiaviation.com/
Livingston County, “About the Spencer J. Hardy Airport,” https://milivcounty.gov/airport/about/
Michigan Voter Information Center, https://mvic.sos.state.mi.us/
Photo: Gage Skidmore, “J. D. Vance (53809189416).jpg,” June 16, 2024, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/), color-adjusted, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:J._D._Vance_(53809189416).jpg

Lansing

Tags: Howell · JD Vance · Livingston County · Tom Barrett · 7th Congressional District · Election 2026