Vice President Kamala Harris brought the Democratic National Convention to Milwaukee Tuesday night.
As thousands gathered inside the United Center in Chicago on the second night of the DNC, Harris spoke to a raucous crowd about 90 miles away inside Fiserv Forum. Harris took to the stage in Milwaukee after the end of the ceremonial roll call at the DNC.
“This is a people-powered campaign, and together we will chart a new way forward,” Harris said.
Stay informed on the latest news
Sign up for WPR’s email newsletter.
Harris will speak at the DNC later this week. But on Tuesday, she was on the campaign trail, attempting to get voters in the swing state out to the polls this fall.
During a 20-minute speech at Fiserv Forum, where the Republican National Convention was held a month ago, Harris focused on the differences between her and former President Donald Trump.
“As we all know, this campaign is not just about us versus Donald Trump,” Harris said. “This is about very different visions for our nation.”
“One — ours — focused on the future. The other focused on the past,” she added. “Wisconsin, we fight for the future.”
Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz, the governor of Minnesota, joined Harris during the trip to Wisconsin. He said the “big party” was occurring in Milwaukee Tuesday night.
“This is where it’s at,” Walz said.
Organizers for the Harris-Walz campaign said over 15,000 people attended the rally.
“Not only do we have massive energy at our convention, we’ve got a hell of a lot more energy at where (Republicans) had their convention, right here,” Walz said.
The 2020 Democratic National Convention was also held in Milwaukee, but it was a mainly virtual one because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rallygoers say they’re ‘all in’ for Harris
Those inside Fiserv Forum included Mina Raj.
“I work downtown, heard the rally was coming, and felt like I just had to be a part of it,” Raj said.
Raj was holding her toddler, Ezra, before the event began.
“I want Ezra to grow up in a world where he can be whoever he wants to be and is safe to be whoever he wants to be,” she said.
Carrie Simpson, who was born in Milwaukee, drove an hour- and-a-half to the rally from where she lives in Illinois.
“I couldn’t wait to get here,” she said before the event began.
When President Joe Biden dropped out of the race in July, Simpson said she felt it energized progressive voters.
“I felt bad for him, but it was like a great relief,” Simpson said.
“I felt very positive, very energized,” she added. “I think they (Harris-Walz) probably have a better chance of getting young people out to vote, who seem very reluctant to vote for anybody.”
Cheryl Juech, with the voting advocacy group PERSISTers Wisconsin, said the group is “all in for Kamala” when she was at the event.
“It’s like lightning has struck this country,” Juech said. “Citizens are engaged, hopeful, excited. And I think it’s something more people have been waiting for than any of us even realized.”
Milwaukee resident Serita Campbell also attended the rally. She said “freedom” was the issue motivating her to vote this year.
“This is the land of liberty, so people should be able, within reason, to have their own rights,” Campbell said.
Milwaukee resident Kim Schmidt listed women’s reproductive rights, climate change, health care and democracy as her reasons for supporting Harris’ campaign.
“I mean, really, I would’ve voted for Mickey Mouse against Trump,” Schmidt said.
This is Harris’ seventh trip to Wisconsin so far this year, and third since President Joe Biden announced he was dropping out of the presidential race.
It was Walz’ second visit to the state since he was announced as Harris’ running mate.
Vance also in Wisconsin Tuesday
Republican Vice Presidential nominee JD Vance was also in Kenosha Tuesday, just days after he visited Milwaukee. Vance touted recent law enforcement endorsements from across Wisconsin and the nation Tuesday.
During his Milwaukee trip, he painted himself and former President Donald Trump as law and order candidates during a visit to the office of Milwaukee’s police union.
In a statement ahead of Harris’ visit, Republican National Committee Chair Michael Whatley said Harris was trying to “lie” about her “dangerously liberal record.”
“Fortunately, Wisconsinites won’t be fooled by the Democrats again—they know that America was better off under President Trump,” the statement said.
Wisconsin Public Radio, © Copyright 2024, Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System and Wisconsin Educational Communications Board.
