PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Kamala Harris said Sunday that “no one can sit on the sidelines” in this year’s presidential election, capping a day of campaigning in the largest city in the crucial battleground state of Pennsylvania.
“We are focused on the future and on the needs of the American people,” Harris said, “unlike Donald Trump, who spends all his time looking in the mirror and focusing on himself.”
In a speech at a city recreation center, the Democratic vice president singled out newborn voters, praising them for their “rightly impatient attitude to change” and telling the audience that “there is too much at stake in the campaign.”
“We can’t wake up the day after the election and regret what we could have done in the next nine days,” Harris said.
Mark Ruffalo and Don Cheadle, two actors who starred in Marvel’s “Avengers” films, were at the rally. Harris reminded the crowd that Pennsylvania’s early voting deadline is Tuesday and urged them to “get it done tomorrow if you can.”
The motivation of voters in Philadelphia, a customary Democratic stronghold, is crucial to Harris’ chances of beating Republican nominee Donald Trump. If turnout here is too low, it will have a challenging time counteracting Trump’s advantages in rural Pennsylvania.
“Philadelphia is a very important part of our path to victory,” Harris told reporters. “That’s why I spend time here. But I’m very optimistic about the enthusiasm.”
Kenny Payne, 62, said Harris will win and “it won’t be close.” The Democratic voter said he was playing golf with a group of Republicans who say they won’t vote for Trump again.
“I think by midnight we’ll all be in bed,” he said outside the recreation center where Harris spoke.
Patrick Boe, 46, said he was confident in the city’s enthusiasm for Harris but acknowledged his opinion may be skewed.
“I’m in a bubble here,” Boe said.
Randyll Butler, a youth basketball coach who introduced Harris, said the election was in the “fourth quarter.”
“We can’t get tired,” she said. “We can’t become complacent.”
The Democratic coalition relies on voters of color, and Harris’ itinerary on Sunday reflected that focus. She began the day with the black congregation of the Church of Christian Compassion, where she said the United States was “determined to turn the chapter of hatred and division.”
Harris drew on the story of the Apostle Paul, who overcame difficulties to spread the word of Jesus.
“In difficult times when we may grow weary of doing good, we must remember the power at work within us, the divine power that changed Paul’s life, carried him through shipwreck, and sustained him through trials.” Harris said.
W. Lonnie Herndon, the church’s senior pastor, introduced Harris as “the voice of the future” and followed her remarks with a sermon on compassion and how “strong people never put others down, but lift them up.”
“We’re going to go out and vote,” he said, as Harris listened from her front-row seat. “And let me be very clear. We don’t elect a priest. We are electing a president who will address this divided United States and bring us back together.”
Their next stop was Philly Cuts, a hair salon in West Philadelphia. Pennsylvania State Rep. Jordan Harris moderated a conversation with Harris and Black men about improving racial representation in education. On the wall was a poster of Barack Obama, the first black president.
“We don’t pay teachers enough,” said Harris, who if elected would be the second Black president and the first female president. “Debt loan debt is a problem.”
Outside the store, people stood on steps and lined the sidewalks hoping to catch a glimpse of Harris. “The MVP of the White House!” someone shouted.
Harris visited the nearby Hakim’s Bookstore, which specializes in African-American history.
“It’s beautiful. It’s just so beautiful,” she said, asking about good books for 6- and 8-year-olds who are the same age as her nieces.
Harris joked about her weight with Ann Hughes, the mother of Pennsylvania State Senator Vincent Hughes.
“They wear me down to the bone,” she said.
After leaving the bookstore, Harris went to a Puerto Rican restaurant called Freddy and Tony’s, where she thanked the volunteers and told them, “We’re going to win.”
She also met with newborn basketball players at the Alan Horowitz “Sixth Man” Center. The coach said the players are “students first, athletes second.” Harris told them, “Think of your brain as a muscle, and as you exercise it, it gets stronger.”
Harris has tried to maintain a focus on abortion rights in the final stages of the campaign, including in appearances with Beyoncé and Michelle Obama. In an interview with CBS News that aired Sunday, Harris declined to say whether she would support abortion restrictions and emphasized the need to restore Roe v. Wade.
“It’s so fundamental,” Harris said.
The nationwide right to abortion was overturned two years ago by the conservative majority on the Supreme Court, which included three justices nominated by Trump as president.
“My first priority is to restore these protections and put an end to this pain and injustice happening in our country,” Harris said.
She also rejected Trump’s claim that he would not sign a national abortion ban if elected. “He says anything, come on,” Harris said. “Do we really trust his word?”
Harris and Tim Walz, the Minnesota governor who is her vice president, are expected to visit all seven battleground states in the coming days, part of a final push before the election.
While Harris was in Philadelphia on Sunday, Walz was campaigning in Las Vegas. On Monday, Walz will visit Manitowoc and Waukesha, Wisconsin, before joining Harris at a rally in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where singer Maggie Rogers is scheduled to perform.
Harris will be in the nation’s capital on Tuesday to make what her campaign calls her “closing argument” in a speech at the Ellipse, a lawn near the White House. It is the same place where Trump spoke on January 6, 2021, when the Republican called on his supporters to march on the Capitol.
Additional campaign stops are planned in Georgia, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Nevada and Arizona.
___
Megerian reported from Washington.
