A new accessory trend has emerged during the Republican National Convention.
Some seemingly uninjured delegates have been spotted wearing ear bandages similar to the one worn by former President Donald Trump after he was wounded during an assassination attempt at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania.
Here is a closer look at why some delegates are wearing ear bandages.
Trump assassination attempt
Trump was speaking at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, when a shooter opened fire.
Two rally attendees were injured and firefighter Corey Comperatore, 50, of Sarver, Pennsylvania, died as he protected his family. The shooter was killed on sight and the FBI is conducting an ongoing investigation.
Amid pushback against the Secret Service, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has committed to a full investigation of the agency and the security plan they had in place for Trump.
Video footage of the rally shows Trump sustaining an ear injury during the shooting.
Trump said in a Truth Social post that a bullet pierced the upper part of his right ear.
“I knew immediately that something was wrong in that I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately the bullet ripping through the skin,” said Trump. “Much bleeding took place, so I realized then what was happening. GOD BLESS AMERICA!”
Trump’s son, Eric Trump, told CBS News his father did not get stitches after the injury, but said he has “a nice flesh wound.” Eric Trump said his father was in good spirits.
Rep. Ronny Jackson, R-Texas, who was the former White House doctor, was on the plane with Trump on Sunday afternoon following the assassination attempt. Jackson told The New York Times he replaced bandages on Trump’s ear.
“The bullet took a little bit off the top of his ear in an area that, just by nature, bleeds like crazy,” said Jackson. “The dressing’s bulked up a bit because you need a bit of absorbent. You don’t want to be walking around with bloody gauze on his ear.”
The bandage Trump has been wearing is rectangular-shaped and covers the outer edge of his right ear.
Ear bandages at the Republican National Convention
Delegates at the RNC wearing bandages have told reporters they are doing so to pay tribute to Trump.
A Texas delegate named Jackson Carpenter told The Washington Post he wore the bandage as a symbol that political violence is unacceptable in America.
Another delegate from Arizona named Joe Neglia told Fox News after he saw the president’s entrance into convention, he made the decision to put on a bandage.
“Yesterday when he came in, and there was that eruption of love in the room, I thought, ‘What can I do to honor the truth? What can I possibly do?’” Neglia said to Fox News. “And then I saw the bandage and I thought, I can do that. So, I put it on simply to honor Trump and to express sympathy with him and unity with him.”
Craig Berland, chair of the Maricopa County GOP, told The Washington Post he estimates that around half of the Arizona delegation is now wearing ear bandages in a sign of solidarity with Trump.
While most delegates wear clothes typically seen on American streets, reporters on the scene have spotted some other unique fashion trends at this year’s Republican National Convention.
Samuel Benson, reporting from Milwaukee for the Deseret News, spotted a man wearing an elephant hat and women wearing a “Don’t Tread on Me” dress and a “Make America Great Again” dress.