Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris on Saturday wrapped up a multi-day campaign swing through Michigan by promoting the start of in-person voting in Detroit.
Detroit is taking advantage of new laws allowing cities to create early voting centers for citizens to cast ballots in person, starting Oct. 19. Harris, wearing a “Detroit Vs Everybody” shirt, held a pep rally in the gymnasium of Western International High School in Southwest Detroit. She urged residents to smash turnout records in other states that started early voting for the Nov. 5 election.
“We have the power to make the decision about the direction of our country and we know this election is about two very different visions for our future,” Harris said. “Like the people of Detroit we have grit, we have excellence, we have history.”
Harris spoke for roughly 10 minutes, giving a truncated version of speeches she’s delivered in Grand Rapids, Lansing, and Oakland County this week. On Tuesday, she also recorded a radio town hall-style interview with Charlamange Tha God in Detroit.
Lizzo, a singer and artist who was born in the city and moved to Texas at age 10, briefly took the stage to support Harris and declare her pride in Detroit.
“They say if Kamala Harris wins, the whole country will be like Detroit,” the singer said. “Proud like Detroit. Resilient like Detroit. The same Detroit that innovated the auto industry and the music industry. Put some respect on Detroit’s name.”
Some attendees hoped to hear more from her amid concerns that Harris’ message is not landing with undecided voters and even some supporters.
Jasmine Johnson said she typically votes Democrat but is unsure how to feel about Harris. She said women’s rights, protecting abortion access and reducing the cost of housing are her top issues. Johnson is a renter and was interested in Harris’ plan to offer $25,000 in down payment assistance to first-time homebuyers.
“I’m still learning about her, I wouldn’t say I have feelings toward it, I’m still learning why she’s running,” Johnson said. “I had a chance to watch the presidential debate. I feel like there were a lot of unanswered questions.”
Council Member Gabriela Santiago-Romero, an immigrant from Mexico representing Southwest Detroit communities, said the campaign has been light on substance. She said Detroit canvassers are reporting low enthusiasm and more openness to Trump.
“Democrats are missing the mark completely,” Santiago-Romero said. “The messaging needs to be focused on all that we’ve done for you and me. I’m realizing that me and my team are going to have to begin planning around Trump in office and what that would mean for us.”
Santiago-Romero said the election reminds her of Trump’s surprising 2016 victory in Michigan, as local officials are offering advice while being ignored by the national campaign.
“What I saw Harris do right off the bat was just memes,” Santiago-Romero said. “It was weeks worth of memes, nothing around policies, nothing around promises, and you don’t win votes for memes. People care about facts. They don’t care about celebrities.”
Other Democrats had a more optimistic view of the campaign’s work to turn out voters.
“I know the enthusiasm is there,” said state Rep. Tyrone Carter, D-Detroit. “But indecision is a decision.”
Carter said he was unsettled by Detroit rapper Trick Trick and boxer Tommy “Hitman” Hearns endorsing Trump, but it’s unlikely to influence voters. Trump has been campaigning aggressively in Detroit, holding a Friday rally at Huntington Place.
Detroit resident Ayanna Thomas said pro-Trump ads running in Detroit are “damaging” to Harris, and she’s received around a dozen pieces of Trump campaign mail. She’s been phone banking for the campaign but is not as confident as she was when Harris became the nominee several months ago.
Democrats predict a tight race
Trump earned 5% of Detroit’s support in 2020, with 12,899 votes. It was a modest improvement from 2016, when Trump earned just 3% of Detroit’s support – 7,682 votes total.
A Trump campaign spokesman said any gains in Detroit votes could make an impact in Michigan, considering President Joe Biden won by 154,000 votes in 2020 and Trump won by 10,700 in 2016.
U.S. Rep. Shri Thanedar, D-Detroit, said he’s nervous about how close the overall race appears to be in its final weeks. Thanedar said it should be a “landslide” for Harris, but people are feeling the pressure of inflation and wrongly trust Trump to improve their financial standing.
“Some people are convinced that Trump is better on the economy,” Thanedar said. “He is not. He doesn’t have a plan besides giving big tax breaks to the rich. We need to get our message out.”
State data shows 54,991 Detroiters cast absentee ballots as of Saturday, representing more than half of all residents who received an absentee ballot.
Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan led a march from the high school to cast his ballot for Harris at an early voting center established at Clark Park. The city set up 14 locations where citizens can vote in person, regardless of where in Detroit they live. There are two in each City Council district.
“Michigan has never seen this before, Detroit has never seen it,” Duggan said. “For Detroiters, it’s a tradition to go to the polls. Now to be able to have another 16 days you can have that same experience no matter what is most convenient.”
Phillip Stevenson and Ismal Gonzales, both residents in Southwest Detroit, protested outside the event with a sign reading “20,000 children murdered by USA and Israel with your money” in Spanish.
Stevenson, who identified himself as Jewish, said Israel’s war in Gaza is preventing him from supporting Harris, though she could earn his vote by opposing further military support. Stevenson said Harris’ response to concerns voiced by Arab American and Muslim voters has been “superficial.”
“When I see images every day of children in plastic bags or babies burning, I have to do the right thing,” Stevenson said. “(That means) advocating for a ceasefire, given our tax dollars are going to fund a genocide going on, and an arms embargo.”
Harris was interviewed by national reporters in Detroit before the rally. She said there are “so many tragic stories” coming out of Gaza, but “the first and most tragic” is the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas. Harris said it’s important to recognize “an extraordinary number of innocent Palestinians have been killed” as well as the deaths of innocent Israelis.
Gonzales said he feels Harris has posed herself as being tough on immigration. He hasn’t received any outreach from either campaign. Gonzales is undecided as well but hasn’t voted in past presidential elections.
“There’s a large immigrant community here and it’s totally intertwined with this (war),” Gonzales said.
Contrasting messages
Harris encouraged the crowd to watch Trump’s rallies to see how his message contrasts with hers. Trump’s Friday rally heavily focused on an alleged “invasion” of migrants.
“In a community like Southwest Detroit, and around the region, where we are a framework of first-generation Americans (Trump) looks at people who are immigrants as less than,” said State Sen. Jeremy Moss, D-Southfield. “He thrives on divisiveness.”
Moss said Michigan “walked away” from Trump in 2020 and the former president has failed to make a compelling case for why he should occupy the White House again.
“This is the first presidential election since Jan. 6, 2021, and I can’t tell you how many voters that touched – it weighs heavily on their mind,” Moss said. “We can have different visions for the future of the country but you can’t have those debates when the last guy who left office left it in an insurrection. There are Republicans in Michigan who are eager to defeat Trumpism so they can have a normal party again.”
Duggan said he didn’t gather much from Trump’s speech, referencing a technical malfunction that left Trump standing on stage without sound for a portion of the rally.
“You know I caught 18 minutes of it, but I couldn’t hear it,” Duggan said.