Harris calls on supporters to 'fight' as Trump accelerates his campaign

Vice President Kamala Harris launched a bus tour of Pennsylvania, mobilizing volunteers in the crucial swing state, while her Republican opponent Donald Trump announced plans to step up the pace of his political appearances to slow her advance.

Harris' trip to Pittsburgh and surrounding counties ahead of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago this week underscores how important the state is to Democrats' hopes in November, as well as efforts by Harris – whose poll numbers have soared since she took over the party ticket for President Joe Biden just weeks ago – to gain traction with white suburban voters who could decide the election.

“We know that our country will only be as strong as our willingness to fight for it and to fight for what we stand for,” Harris told his supporters in Beaver County.

The tour comes as Republican presidential candidate Trump announced plans for a series of rallies, press conferences and interviews to refocus attention on issues such as immigration and the economy, where Republicans see an advantage.

Trump will hold rallies in Pennsylvania on Monday, Michigan on Tuesday and North Carolina on Wednesday as a counterprogram to the Democratic National Convention. The following day, the former president will travel to the US-Mexico border to take part in an event designed to highlight the vice president's role in the White House's immigration policy.

Aides say the Republican will also give a series of interviews and press appearances to create a contrast to Harris, who has largely stayed away from the press in the weeks since her nomination.

That's in part because Democrats have no desire to jeopardize the momentum of the campaign. A poll released Sunday shows Harris narrowly ahead of Trump in a neck-and-neck race among registered voters nationwide, 49 percent to 45 percent. The same poll by the Washington Post, ABC News and Ipsos showed a neck-and-neck race in early July, when Biden was the nominee.

In Pennsylvania, Harris is expected to visit a campaign switchboard and local businesses, among other things. The vice president will be accompanied by her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, as well as Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff and Minnesota First Lady Gwen Walz. After the multi-day tour, the group is expected to head to Chicago to begin the week-long celebration of Harris' nomination as the Democratic nominee.

Campaign officials acknowledge that Harris is trying to recreate the coalition that won the state for Biden and Harris in the 2020 election, when they also ran against Trump. Biden won the state by just over a percentage point, buoyed both by high turnout among liberal urban voters and by narrowing Trump's lead in historically conservative counties like Beaver, the northwest Pittsburgh suburb.

One challenge for the vice president is to replicate that success without Biden, who was born in Scranton, Pennsylvania, has long emphasized his ties to the Keystone State and enjoys the support of moderate and older white voters. Harris hopes her newly unveiled economic program, which includes populist provisions such as a subsidy for first-time home buyers, an expanded child tax credit and new maximums on prescription drug out-of-pocket costs, will help maintain those margins.

“If you believe in ending child poverty, then fight for it. If you believe in what we need to do to strengthen the middle class, then fight for the middle class,” Harris said. “These are the things we stand for, and therefore these are the things we fight for.”

The trip will also be an early test of the logistical and communications skills of Harris' campaign as it tries to integrate the vice president's vision into an infrastructure designed for Biden. Her campaign has seven field offices in Western Pennsylvania and has launched a weekend doorknob campaign to capitalize on the enthusiasm Harris has received since Biden dropped out of the race.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without any modifications.