Trump's Republican convention speech draws 2.5 million viewers on Fox News

U.S. President Donald Trump's ​speech on the opening ​night of the Republican midterm convention ​drew about 2.5 million viewers on Fox News, according to Nielsen data, potentially undercutting his claim the event "beat the NFL" opening ‌night.

Fox News ⁠was ⁠the only major cable network to carry Trump's roughly two-hour ​address in full. The Murdoch family-controlled network averaged 2.5 million viewers ​during the speech, ahead of MS NOW's 1 million and CNN's 441,000 in the same window.

Trump ​used the convention to appeal ⁠to voters ‌to treat November's midterm elections as ​a ​referendum on him.


He urged voters to "pretend ⁠I'm on the ballot" during the two-day gathering ​that kicked off what Republicans hope ​will be a Trump-focused campaign aimed at galvanizing the party's base and recreating the turnout that powered his 2016 and 2024 election victories.

In a Truth Social post on Thursday, Trump said the ‌gathering was "far bigger, better, and more important than anyone thought possible" and that "the overall ​numbers beat ​the NFL," without specifying ⁠figures or methodology.

The convention coincided with the NFL season opener between the Seattle Seahawks and New England ​Patriots.

Ratings for the game are not yet available, but the NFL averaged about 18 million viewers per game last season, and last year's opener drew close to 28 million.