On a bitterly cold January day in 2020, former President Donald Trump packed the Wildwood Convention Center with supporters at one of his biggest rallies of the last presidential campaign.

Four years later, Wildwood Mayor Ernie Troiano Jr. learned Trump wanted a reprise but the old venue was unavailable. He offered another idea:

"I said, well, we've got a beach," Troiano, said.

And thus was planned what is poised to be a big, boisterous, seaside Trump-fest at the Jersey Shore this weekend in a town that draws visitors from across the Garden State and its swing state neighbor, Pennsylvania, six months before a high-stakes rematch between Trump and President Joe Biden.

Trump, who is campaigning while appearing at his hush money trial in Manhattan three days a week, has, by necessity, been focusing on big one-off rallies rather than frequent campaign stops. Wildwood, with its festival atmosphere and politically incorrect T-shirts, matches his brand of campaign showmanship. The town hosts country music festivals, muscle car shows, and Jeep parades on the beach. The Republican enclave in New Jersey is also a Trump-friendly spot in a blue state.

"Take the politics out of it and people would bend over backward for this number of people to come to their town," Troiano, who is a Republican and a Trump supporter said. "We become national spotlight. They see the size of the beaches, they see the amusement parks we have to offer, our restaurants and hotels take a good hit."

Trump will speak at a rally around 5 p.m. with the beach venue opening at noon. The space can hold more than 30,000 people. The campaign is paying for the event and made an upfront reimbursement payment of $54,000 to cover law enforcement support from Wildwood and nearby departments, Troiano said.

There's some backstory there. The last time Trump came to Wildwood, then-mayor Pete Byron, a Democrat, blasted the campaign for its failure to reimburse the town for some costs.

Troiano, Byron, and sitting City Commissioner Steve Mikulski are all facing indictments that allege they defrauded the state's healthcare system by pretending to be full-time employees and collecting health insurance. So Trump, who has been indicted in four jurisdictions, will speak in a town in which two of its three current elected leaders are also under indictment.

Why Wildwood?

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