Harris campaign staffs up in battleground states, 'Sun Belt’ in play By Reuters

By Stephanie Kelly

WILMINGTON, Delaware (Reuters) -Vice President Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign is staffing up in battleground states over the next two weeks including in the 'Sun Belt’ that increasingly looked out of reach for President Joe Biden, citing momentum for her White House bid as grassroots engagement and fundraising soar.

„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 refers to states including Georgia, Arizona and Nevada, and the Blue Wall includes Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. U.S. President Joe Biden won all six of those states in 2020 by thin margins, but just weeks ago, his campaign said the Sun Belt and North Carolina looked increasingly out of reach.

Harris’ takeover of the Democratic presidential campaign has injected new energy, money and enthusiasm into the race, which is translating into a shift in polls that show her pulling even with Republican former President Donald Trump or ahead in some battleground states.

Since Biden endorsed Harris on July 21, 200,000 volunteers have joined the Harris campaign, while over 350,000 supporters attended their first phone bank, rally or other campaign event – an over 350% increase in event attendees, Kanninen said.

Her campaign announced on Friday it raised $310 million in July, fueled by small-dollar donations.

In the next two weeks, the campaign will add 150 more staff in the „Blue Wall,” and will more than double its staff in Arizona and North Carolina, Kanninen said.

Harris campaign operations on the ground are more extensive than Trump’s, he said.

„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 the accuracy of those numbers, and did not respond to a request for comment.

This week Trump’s campaign was set to launch a $10 million advertising blitz in six battleground states. A super PAC supporting Trump, MAGA Inc., kicked off a parallel ad blitz after it said it will spend $32 million in three states with new ads criticizing Harris.

Some political experts have questioned Trump’s lack of campaign infrastructure in recent days.

„Those of us who are interested in voting are like, 'Why don’t you need a ground game?'” political historian Heather Cox Richardson said in a Facebook (NASDAQ:) livestream. „It really takes feet on the ground, knuckles on doors, meetings with people, everything to get money circulating … He is not trying to get enough votes.”

Harris was expected to meet in person this weekend with the top contenders vying to join the ticket as the candidate for vice president, Reuters reported on Friday, citing sources.

She will meet with leading contenders Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro for interviews on Sunday, according to sources familiar with her plans.

Other top names include U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, U.S. Senator Mark Kelly, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear and Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker.

Harris held a marginal one-percentage-point lead over Trump in a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll, closing the gap that opened in the final weeks of Biden’s reelection bid.

The three-day poll showed Harris supported by 43% of registered voters, with Trump supported by 42%, within the poll’s 3.5 percentage point margin of error.