In a last-ditch effort to secure Michigan votes, Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden called upon heavy hitters President Barack Obama and musician Stevie Wonder to join him on the campaign trail in Detroit, just days before the election.
Photographer Cybelle Codish covered the Belle Isle event for BridgeDetroit.
Related stories:
- Should Detroiters be worried about voter intimidation on Election Day?
- Who is paying for Detroit’s revamped November election?
- Do you have questions or concerns about voting in Detroit? Let us know
Biden’s drive-in voter mobilization event was held at Belle Isle in Detroit and again in Flint on Halloween. Also in tow were Mayor Mike Duggan, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Sens. Debbie Stabenow and Gary Peters. This was the first campaign trip to Detroit that Biden and Obama have made together for the 2020 election.
Obama and Biden encouraged Michiganders to vote early and vote now. They also made a stop in Detroit suburb Bloomfield Hills to thank volunteers and supporters.
During the events Biden and Obama criticized the current president’s lack of response to coronavirus, saying he allowed it to spread. Obama called the current president a “reality star” who “hasn’t shown any interest in just doing the work of helping anybody but himself and his friends.”
Whitmer, once a vice presidential possibility for Biden’s ticket, greeted the crowd by walking out to rapper Gmac Cash’s song “Big Gretch,” a remix of Detroit rapper Tee Grizley’s “Trenches” soundtrack. The Democratic governor became highly favored in Detroit earlier this year due to her strict response to coronavirus.