Vice President Seeks To Inspire Voter Enthusiasm Amid Tight Presidential Campaign
Civic Media StaffSep 20, 2024, 8:30 PM CST
With the U.S. presidential race entering its final phase, Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris sought to fire up thousands of her supporters in the key battleground state of Wisconsin during a campaign rally in a Madison arena on Friday evening.
Harris, the sitting U.S. vice president, spoke for nearly 30 minutes to about 10,000 people who gathered at the Alliant Energy Center to hear her talk through familiar topics of her campaign and her message about speaking out and going to the polls in November.
“Your vote is your voice, and your voice is your power. And never let anyone take your power from you,” she said. “So Madison, today, I ask you: Are you ready to make your voices heard?”
Harris’ speech touched on several key issues, including abortion rights, housing, cost-of-living challenges, health care, promoting small businesses and national security.
But perhaps the primary thrust of her comments Friday was to build enthusiasm and encourage people to vote. Noting there are only 46 days remaining until the election and how close the race appears to be between Harris and her Republican opponent, former President Donald Trump, she said this would be a “tight race.”
“We are the underdog in this race,” she said, “and we have some hard work ahead of us.”
She argued that Trump’s campaign has offered no plan for the future and instead offers only “the same old tired show. The same old tired playbook we’ve heard for years.”
“It’s time to turn the page,” she said, to cheers from the crowd.
She sought to cast herself in stark contrast to her GOP rival, a candidate from a younger generation who can bridge the division in the country, offer an optimistic vision and build coalitions to work together to solve problems.
“We want a president who works for all the American people and I promise you that is the kind of president I will be,” she said.
Friday’s event was Harris’ first trip to Madison and according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, her fourth to Wisconsin since Harris took over the top of the Democratic ticket from current U.S. President Joe Biden. Harris’ last Wisconsin stop was a rally at Milwaukee’s Fiserv Forum on Aug. 20 while most of her party was gathered at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
Before Harris spoke, some of Wisconsin’s top Democratic leaders gathered to greet her, including Gov. Tony Evers, U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan and Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway.
During her remarks, the vice president noted that she spent time in the city as a child. Her parents were professors at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
