Vice President Kamala Harris appeared with Lizzo on Saturday (October 19) in the singer's hometown of Detroit, marking the start of in-person voting and showering the city with praise after it was recently disowned by Republican nominee Donald Trump.
“All the best things happened in Detroit. Coney Dogs, Faygo and Lizzo,” the singer joked to a crowd, pointing to herself after listing the meat on a stick and soda the city is famous for.
He said it was time to “respect Detroit's name a little bit” noting that the city had revolutionized the auto and music industries and added that he had already voted for Harris as voting early was “a power move.”
Piles of praise for the Motor City came after Trump, the former president, insulted him during a recent campaign rally. And Harris continued the theme, saying of her campaign: “Like the people of Detroit, we have courage, we have excellence, we have history.”
With her arms outstretched as she took the stage, Harris let the crowd see that she was wearing a 'Detroit vs. Everybody' given to her by the owner of the business that produces them at a previous stop in town earlier in the week. She also moved around the stage during her speech with a handheld microphone, without the use of a teleprompter.
More than 1 million Michigan residents have already voted by mail in the Nov. 5 election, and Harris predicted Detroit's early voting turnout would be strong.
“Who is the Capital of Record Production?” Harris asked as he implored the crowd to set new highs for early voting. “We're going to break some records here in Detroit today.”
He accused Trump of being unstable: “One should just watch his rallies if you're not really sure how to vote.”
“We are not going to get those 17 days back. On election day, we don't want to have any regrets,” the vice president said.
Lizzo also told the crowd: “Mrs. The Commander-in-Chief has a nice ring to it.'
“This is the swing state of every state, so every last vote here counts,” the singer said. Then, referring to her song of the same name, Lizzo added: “If you ask me if America is ready for its first female president, I have only one thing to say: It's about time!”
Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley said in a statement that Harris needed Lizzo to “hide the fact that Michiganders felt good under President Trump — real wages were higher, prices were lower, and everyone was better”.
Talona Johnson, a product manager from Rochester, Michigan, attended Harris' rally and said Harris “and her team are doing the things necessary to make sure people are informed.”
“I believe he is telling the truth. He's trying to help people,” said Johnson, who said she planned to vote for Harris and saw women's rights as her top concern.
“I don't necessarily agree with everything she said, but it's better than the alternative.”
In comments to reporters before the rally, Harris said she was in Detroit “to thank all the people for the work they're doing to help organize and register people to vote and get them out to vote today. He also called Detroit “a great American city” with “many hard-working people who have courage and ambition and deserve respect.”
The vice president was asked whether the Biden administration's full support for Israel in its war with Hamas in Gaza could hurt her support in Michigan. Dearborn, near Detroit, is the largest Arab-majority city in the nation.
“It's never been easy,” Harris said of Middle East politics. “But that doesn't mean we're giving up.”
He'll gain more star power later Saturday when he rallies in Atlanta with another wildly popular singer, Usher.
Early voting is also taking place in Georgia. Over 1.2 million ballots have been cast, either in person or by mail. Democrats are hoping an extensive organizing effort will boost Harris against Trump in the final weeks of the campaign.
Roderick Williams, 56, brought his three daughters to the Harris rally in Atlanta. His youngest daughter was born around the time former President Barack Obama took office, and he hopes they can see history again by seeing Harris become the first black woman to become president.
“It's important for them to see that anything is possible,” Williams said.
