Vice President Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign is ramping up efforts in battleground states, including the ‘Sun Belt,’ over the next two weeks. This move comes as her grassroots engagement and fundraising gain significant momentum.
“Our grassroots engagement is proving that Kamala Harris is strong in both the Sunbelt and the Blue Wall – with multiple pathways to 270 (electoral votes),” wrote Dan Kanninen, the campaign’s battleground states director, in a memo on Saturday.
The Sunbelt includes states like Georgia, Arizona, and Nevada, while the Blue Wall encompasses Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. President Joe Biden narrowly won all six of these states in 2020. However, his campaign recently indicated that the Sun Belt and North Carolina were becoming increasingly challenging to secure.
Harris’s leadership of the Democratic presidential campaign has brought new energy, funding, and enthusiasm, reflected in her rising poll numbers. These show her either tied with or ahead of Republican former President Donald Trump in some key battleground states.
Since Biden endorsed Harris on July 21, the Harris campaign has seen a surge in support, with 200,000 volunteers joining and over 350,000 people attending their first phone bank, rally, or other campaign event – a 350% increase in event participation, according to Kanninen.
On Friday, the campaign announced it had raised $310 million in July, primarily from small-dollar donations. Over the next two weeks, the campaign plans to add 150 more staff members in the Blue Wall states and more than double its staff in Arizona and North Carolina.
Kanninen highlighted the campaign’s extensive ground operations compared to Trump’s. “In Nevada, Team Harris has 13 offices, while Trump has just one,” Kanninen wrote. “In Pennsylvania, we have 36 coordinated offices while Trump has just three. In Georgia, we have 24 offices while the Trump team didn’t open their first until June.”
The Trump campaign did not immediately confirm these numbers or respond to a request for comment.