Interest in Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson is so high that his Tuesday event scheduled for a suburban Phoenix church had to be moved to a much larger location, his campaign says.
“We think that’s partly because since the debate a lot more people have become aware of Dr. Carson and his message,” Carson senior strategist Ed Brookover told the Arizona Republic. “What you want is to get the chance for people to hear you.”
The retired pediatric neurosurgeon has recently seen a bump in the polls and will speak to a room that can accommodate 6,000 people in the Phoenix Convention Center in downtown Phoenix, where Donald Trump drew thousands last month.
Grace Community Church, where the speech was originally planned, can hold up to 2,300.
While Trump is still leading in the polls, Carson is ranked third according to the latest CNN/ORC poll. His personal narrative growing up poor in inner-city Detroit and the role that faith, hard work and hands-on parenting and becoming an Ivy-league educated neurosurgeon has resonated with with social conservatives.
Carson released a video Tuesday with Grammy-nominated multi-platinum producer Kevin “Khao” Cates focused on his plan to revive the American Dream. has released his official promise of healing, change and the revival of the American Dream.
A vocal critic of Planned Parenthood, Carson’s profile continued to increase last week as he was criticized by opponents for his role in research involving tissue from aborted fetuses more than 20 years ago. And Carson, the only black Republican candidate, weighed in on the Black Lives Matter movement accusing activists of “creating strife.”
On Wednesday, Carson will make his first trip as a presidential candidate to the U.S.-Mexico border, his campaign said.
“Immigration is a leading issue in the country and very important to our economic growth,” Brookover said. “Dr. Carson wanted to hear from some of the local experts that deal with immigration on a daily basis.”