By james art RENO, Nev. (KOLO) — Vice President Kamala Harris landed at Nevada Air National Guard Air Force One mid-afternoon in the “Biggest Little City.”
Greeted by Washoe County Commissioner Alexis Hill and members of the National Guard, she headed to downtown Reno in what will be her only visit to Northern Nevada before Election Day. For several hours, Harris supporters continued to flock to the Reno Convention Center. It would eventually swell to a crowd of more than 6,000.
While many would be from Northern Nevada, there will also be visitors from Northern California.
For them, it would also be their only chance to see their own daughter before November 5, 2024.
When Harris took the stage, the cheers were deafening. She told the crowd she was happy to return to the place she and her family frequented from the Bay Area growing up.
“Oh, it’s good to be back,” said the candidate.
She spoke about reproductive rights and encouraged the crowd to vote for Nevada Ballot Question 6. This would put those rights in the Nevada constitution.
She talked about what her first term as president would look like and compared it to Donald Trump’s second term.
“I don’t want to score political points,” Harris said. “I’m trying to make progress. And I commit to listening to the experts, to listening to those who will be affected by the decisions I make. And to listen to people who disagree with me. Because that’s what real leaders do. That’s what real leaders do. And unlike Donald Trump, I don’t believe that people who disagree with me are the enemy.
But this trip to Washoe County was no accident.
Washoe County residents live in the purple county of the purple state of Nevada and may ultimately determine who enters the White House. Washoe County has been the deciding factor in Nevada in some back-to-back contests.
Just ask US Senator Catherine Cortez Masto. This happened just two years ago.
“We know this, just two years ago you helped me win re-election, right?” Cortez Masto asked rhetorically.
Harris spoke for about 20 minutes. But talk to some who attended her rally, her message was inspiring.
“And I was a little worried that we weren’t going to be able to pack this place,” sad Sparks resident Melanie Gordon. “But we did it. I still have tears in my eyes.”
“I think the most important thing she has to say is that she’s here for all of us,” said Stuart resident Stacey Stahl.
Both Stahl and Gordon say they have already cast what they consider to be some of the most meaningful votes of their lives.
This is Harris’ first and last visit to Washoe County as vice president and as a presidential candidate. Her time is running out.
But she encouraged people to vote early, which ends tomorrow in Washoe County at 6 p.m. at the District Complex 7.
She also encouraged people to leave their mail in the bulletins.
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