Trump promises US$5,000 to every adult American if they vote Republican – video

US President Donald Trump has said he will pay every adult American US$5,000 if the Republican Party retains control of both the House of Representatives and the Senate following the midterm elections in November.

Source: Trump during a speech at the Republican Party convention in Dallas, Texas

Quote: "If the Republicans win the House of Representatives and the US Senate, both of them, because of our tremendous economic success […] I will issue a dividend to every adult citizen of the United States of America for US$5,000."

Details: Trump explained that this would be "very much like a successful company will do a cash distribution to its shareholders".

The president added that the only condition would be that the money must be spent exclusively within the United States.

"We don't want you going to Canada," he said.

This is likely the first time in US history that a president has resorted to openly buying voters during an election campaign.

In addition, the source of funding, the mechanisms for monitoring how the money would be spent and the overall legality of such payments remain unclear.

In 2025, the US adult population stood at around 267 million, meaning the total cost of the payments would exceed US$1.3 trillion.

It is also notable that Trump is promising to hand out trillions of dollars at a time when, during his presidency, US national debt has reached its highest level in history, exceeding US$40 trillion.

During his speech, Trump said a Republican defeat in November would mean Americans would "lose your border, lose your tax cuts, lose your safety and security".

"You'll be going through hell just like you did just two years ago," the US president added.

Trump claimed that the US had been "the laughing stock all over the world", but that no one was laughing at the country anymore.

This latest populist initiative comes amid discouraging opinion polls for the White House, with Democrats holding a solid lead ahead of the elections.

Trump has made no secret of his concern about a possible election defeat. On 21 August, at a rally in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Trump told supporters that he expected to be impeached if Republicans lost their majority in Congress.

"[If we lose the midterms] I'm going to be impeached," Trump said at the time.

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