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Harris tells Michigan crowd she’s gaining momentum in presidential race
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Harris tells Michigan crowd she’s gaining momentum in presidential race

East Lansing — Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris told a crowd of thousands on the Michigan State University campus Sunday night that the White House campaign has “momentum” two days before Election Day.

Harris, who is vying for votes with Republican former President Donald Trump, made a series of stops in Michigan on Sunday, starting with an appearance at a Black church northwest of Detroit where she quoted scripture and talked about her upbringing in Oakland, California. The church where he and his sister Maya sang in the choir.

He spoke in the evening at MSU’s Jenison Field House in front of a green-and-white banner that read “a president for all.” The crowd was energetic and roaring with applause when Harris spoke about protecting women’s freedom to make decisions about their own bodies. The Harris campaign said there were 6,500 people at the venue, with about 4,000 people outside in the overflow area.

This was the last in a series of large rallies Harris has held in Michigan; Democrats expressed optimism about early voting turnout in the state. Nearly 3 million people in Michigan had cast their ballots as of Sunday morning, according to the Secretary of State’s office.

“We have momentum,” Harris said in East Lansing. “It’s on our side. Can you feel it? And we have momentum because our campaign taps into the passions, aspirations, and dreams of the American people.

“Because we are optimistic and excited about what we can do together, because we know it is time for a new generation of leadership in America.”

Harris is locked in a tight race to win 15 electoral votes against Trump in Michigan. He had previously described himself as follows: oppressed in the competition. The Great Lakes State is one of seven battleground states expected to determine Tuesday’s election.

Harris told the congregation at the Greater Emmanuel Institutional Church of God on Schaefer Highway in Detroit that she was encouraged by the “faith in action” she saw as she traveled the country, noting that the country was just two days away from deciding on the issue. “The fate of our nation.”

“Growing up in a church, I learned that faith is a verb, and we show it in our actions, in what we do, in our service, and in difficult times,” the vice president added.

Harris said she believes the country is “ready to bend the course of history toward justice.”

“Let’s turn the page and write the next chapter of our history,” he said.

Bishop John Drew Sheard, the church’s pastor, led the congregation in a prayer for Harris as the vice president sat in the pews.

“In the name of Jesus, give him the wisdom… give him what he needs,” the priest said. “We speak of victory in the name of Jesus.”

Chaunel Phillips, 51, traveled from Muskegon to attend Harris’ rally in East Lansing on Sunday. Phillips said he’s opposing Trump this fall because Trump wants Roe v. in 2022. Referring to the Supreme Court justices who overturned the Wade case, he said their actions caused women to lose the right to control their own bodies.

When asked what Harris becoming the first female president means to her as a Black woman, Phillips said it would fulfill what her own parents told her: A woman can do anything she sets her mind to.

“It’s possible,” Phillips said. “This is very important… If I set my mind to be president like him, it can happen. He got my vote.”

‘Nice to see you’

Victoria LaCivita, a spokeswoman for Trump’s campaign in Michigan, said Sunday that Harris is “her last chance to convince Michiganders to think that the last four years have not been a final failure,” referring to Democratic President Joe Biden’s ongoing term.

“But Michigan voters know better,” LaCivita added. “Michiganans are fed up, and one more rally full of fear mongering is not going to move the needle.”

Trump visited and stopped in Michigan on Friday dear born and a Rally at Macomb Community College in Warren.

Harris’ trip to Detroit was postponed due to an unannounced appearance on NBC late Saturday:Saturday Night Live,” in which she portrayed herself as the mirror image of comedian Maya Rudolph’s portrayal of her. Rudolph first portrayed Harris on the series in 2019.

“It’s great to see you, Kamala,” Harris said to Rudolph, “and I’m just here to remind you that you got this.”

After the show, Harris flew to Detroit Metro Airport and landed shortly after 1 a.m.

Harris addressed reporters after speaking at the Greater Emmanuel Institutional Church of God on Sunday afternoon.

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Democratic Presidential candidate Kamala Harris at a Detroit church

Democratic Presidential candidate Kamala Harris at the Greater Emanuel Institutional Church of God in Detroit on November 3, 2024 in Detroit

When asked about her closing message to Arab Americans in the state, Harris said she was proud to have the support of many Arab leaders and said there were many issues important to Michigan voters, including reducing costs. Some Arab and Muslim voters have said they will not support Harris, citing the Biden administration’s support for Israel in its war against the militant group Hamas in Gaza. “I have been very clear about Gaza: the death toll. Harris said innocent Palestinians are unconscionable. “We must end the war, we must get the hostages out, and as President of the United States, I will do everything I can to achieve that goal and to achieve a two-state solution where Palestinians will have the right to live on their own.” – Determination, security and stability in the region.”

Trump has sought to win the votes of Arab Americans in Michigan amid frustration with Biden’s handling of the war between Israel and Hamas. During Visit to Dearborn On Friday, Trump said there were people in the United States and the Middle East who were “not doing their jobs.”

Harris started her speech at the East Lansing rally by touching on the conflicts in the Middle East.

“As president, I will do everything I can to end the war in Gaza,” Harris told the crowd.

Early voting in Detroit

In Detroit, Harris stopped by Kuzzo’s Chicken & Waffles, a black-owned restaurant in the city’s Livernois Avenue of Fashion business district, just down the street from one of the campaign’s field offices. He was greeted with cheers inside the restaurant and began wandering around the dining room, stopping to take photos with customers.

“This is retail politics,” said former U.S. Rep. Brenda Lawrence, D-Southfield, who accompanied Harris. “That’s what puts your finger on the scale and gets you to the top.”

Helene Thornton-Crowley, 80, a campaign volunteer from Detroit, wore a bejeweled Kamala T-shirt as she posed for a photo with Harris inside the restaurant. “Very good. “I love the things he talks about,” he said. “He will take care of all people, not just themselves, and I love that.”

Late Sunday afternoon, Harris’ campaign caravan headed north to Pontiac, where she visited the Elam Barbershop on Sanford Street on the city’s southeast side. Reporters were not allowed to listen to the discussion between Harris and members of the Elam family. U.S. Sen. Gary Peters, D-Bloomfield County, was present at the meeting.

Harris’ final campaign stop of the day will be an evening rally on the campus of Michigan State University, where large lines formed to watch Harris speak on Sunday afternoon.

Motivating college students to vote in East Lansing and Ann Arbor could be crucial to Harris’ hopes of winning Michigan. Also East Lansing The much-discussed 7th RegionFormer state Sen. Curtis Hertel, an East Lansing Democrat, and Tom Barrett, a Charlotte Republican, are running for an open seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.

In Michigan, Sunday is the last day of the state’s nine-day early in-person voting period.

Under the new early voting law, Detroit chose to start a week early. According to city elections department data, 5,859 early in-person votes were recorded in Detroit on Saturday; That’s more votes than the previous two Saturdays combined.

The city elections department said 35,970 Detroit voters had cast ballots in person at early voting sites through Saturday. That’s on top of 86,553 ballots returned, according to state data.

“Early voting for Detroit is well beyond our expectations,” Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan told The Detroit News during Harris’ stay at Kuzzo’s. “It’s incredible. We did the smart thing by starting a week in advance, because it gave people a chance to know what happened last week.”

More campaign stops

Harris was in Michigan last week and a big rally Monday night at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.

Trump will hold the final rally of his campaign in Grand Rapids on Monday night; This will be his third consecutive presidential bid.

“We have overcome every attack, every abuse, even two assassination attempts,” Trump said at a rally in Gastonia, North Carolina, outside Charlotte on Saturday. “And now it all depends on it.”

Harris’ running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, will also attend. A campaign rally in Detroit Monday evening. The event will feature performances by the Detroit Youth Choir, Jon Bon Jovi and The War and Treat.

A. Survey of 600 likely Michigan voters conducted in late OctoberThe report commissioned by The Detroit News and WDIV-TV (Channel 4) reported that Harris beat Trump by 3 percentage points, 46.7%-43.7%, and 7.3% of respondents said they would vote for a third-party candidate. It turned out that he stated that they were planning. 2.1 percent said they were undecided.

The poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.

In 2020, Biden beat Trump in Michigan by 154,188 votes, or 3 percentage points, by a 51%-48% margin.

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Associated Press contributed.