ROCHESTER, Pa. — Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris and running mate Tim Walz gave pep talks to campaign volunteers and a high school football team Sunday, with their bus tour in a corner of Pennsylvania serving as a modest, small-town version of the grand rally she's expected to have at the Democratic nominating convention in Chicago this week. Vice President Harris and Walz, the governor of Minnesota, were joined by their spouses, Doug Emhoff and Gwen Walz, as they stopped off to visit volunteers at a campaign office not far from Pittsburgh before continuing on to a firehouse and a high school in another town.
The tour, in a bright blue bus decorated with the candidates' names and the phrase "A new way forward," also included pilgrimages to a convenience store and a restaurant known for its towering sandwiches. Despite running as the sitting vice president, Harris told reporters she feels she has ground to make up in the race against former President Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee. "I very much consider us the underdogs," Harris said at a stop in the township of Moon.
"We have a lot of work to do to earn the vote of the American people. That's why we're on this bus tour today, and we're going to be traveling this country as we've been and talking with folks, listening to folks, and hopefully earning their votes over the next 79 days." Southwestern Pennsylvania is a critical part of a key battleground state that has long commanded the attentio.