The Republican midterm convention that President Donald Trump hyped up is already drawing mockery over swathes of obviously empty seats.
The event kicked off on Wednesday, and the GOP had already been concerned about the event's attendance and viewership, not only because of Trump's low approval ratings but also because of its scheduling overlap with the NFL kickoff. The American Airlines Center in Dallas is hosting the two-day event, and entire sections of its upper seating were empty, according to footage from inside.
"Thousands of seats are left unfilled as the Republican midterm convention begins," estimated FactPost, a popular news account on X.
"You can just feel the energy and excitement," joked prominent lawyer and Trump critic George Conway in reaction to a video of the empty seats.
"Capacity-wise they could have held this in a high school gym," added Aaron Fritschner, the deputy chief of staff for Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA).
"Hmmm...should the kickoff be this empty?" wondered journalist Morgan J. Freeman.
"WOW! Packed house," influencer Matt Rein sarcastically commented.
"Dress like a seat night at the RNC," quipped The Lincoln Project, a political account founded by former GOP strategists. The account also posted a picture of the turnout in a reaction to Trump telling reporters that "Everybody is coming to the convention. Everybody wants to come. We're going to be sold out."
"All he does is lie," The Lincoln Project wrote, along with sharing the picture of empty seats.
Journalist Aaron Rupar shared a video from a Minnesota Republican state representative that showed "the whole upper deck is empty," Rupar wrote.
"There's, like, 300 people there," posted Canadian radio host Dean Blundell, adding a laughing emoji.
Dubbed Trumpapalooza, the event's turnout concerned the GOP so much that it gave out free tickets. However, it has also been criticized as a fundraising event, with some GOP candidates paying thousands for access to Trump at the event.