Harris prepares to hit the campaign trail with Georgia bus tour amid intensifying presidential race

By Edelia J. Carthan, Ed.D.,
Contributing Writer,

Vice President Kamala Harris is set to return to the campaign trail, marking a crucial moment in her presidential bid. She and her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz (D), will embark on a two-day bus tour through Georgia, starting Wednesday and culminating in a rally in Savannah Thursday. This tour will be Harris’s first set of campaign events since she accepted her party’s nomination at the Democratic National Convention last week.
The Georgia tour highlights the significance of the state in the 2024 election, as Georgia, along with other battleground states – Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin – will be pivotal in determining the outcome of the race.
During her convention speech, Harris delivered a powerful message, emphasizing the stakes of this election. “This is a fight for freedom – the fundamental freedom to make decisions about one’s own body and not have their government tell them what they’re supposed to do,” she said. “Across our nation, we witnessed a full-on assault, state by state, on reproductive freedom. And understand who is to blame. Former President Donald Trump did this.”
Harris also paid tribute to those who have supported her throughout her journey, particularly her late mother. “To the woman most responsible for my presence here today – my mother, Shyamala Gopalan Harris, who is always in our hearts. When she came here from India at the age of 19, maybe she didn’t quite imagine this moment. But she believed so deeply in an America where a moment like this is possible.”
The upcoming rally in Savannah will cap off the bus tour, with more details expected to be announced soon. As the Harris-Walz campaign heats up, they are also setting records in fundraising. The campaign has raised an impressive $540 million, the highest amount ever for a presidential candidate at this stage of the race. The most successful fundraising day came in the hour following Harris’s convention speech, bringing in $82 million in just one week.
In the month since President Joe Biden withdrew from the presidential race, both Harris and former President Donald Trump have focused their efforts on the critical battleground states. North Carolina, in particular, has seen increased attention, with Trump making three visits since Biden’s withdrawal. The Tar Heel State, which Trump narrowly won in 2020 by just 1.3 percent, remains a key target for Republicans as they recalibrate their strategy with Biden out of the race.
The Harris-Walz bus tour through Georgia is expected to energize the Democratic base and draw significant attention as the campaign moves forward.
With 71 days left until the election on November 5, Harris’s message of unity and freedom will be put to the test in the fiercely contested battleground states. As both campaigns intensify their efforts, the path to the White House remains as unpredictable as ever.