PITTSBURGH – Vice President Harris has been in western Pennsylvania for nearly a full week preparing for her first and likely only debate with former President Trump.
Harris arrived in Pittsburgh on Thursday and is expected to remain there until Tuesday's crucial game at Philadelphia.
The vice president's seemingly unusual decision to base himself outside Washington may be intended to foster a positive atmosphere and positive local media coverage in the largest and most crucial of the seven battleground states that will determine the outcome of the election.
But the vice president will also be intently focused on the debate itself, the most crucial moment of his candidacy since last month's Democratic National Convention.
Philip Reines, a senior adviser to Hillary Clinton when she was secretary of state, will fill in for Trump during the run-up to the debate. Reines also filled in for Trump during Clinton's run-up in 2016. Democratic activist Karen Dunn and Rohini Kosoglu, Harris' former Senate chief of staff, are preparing for the debate, sources familiar with the matter told The Hill.
Pennsylvania has 19 electoral votes, putting him one step closer to the White House. Biden, who counts Pennsylvania as his home state along with Delaware, won the state in 2020 after it was carried by Trump in 2016.
For now, the battle for the Keystone State appears to be razor-thin: A CNN poll released Wednesday showed the race there is dead-tied, with Harris and Trump favored each at 47 percent.
An average of polls maintained by The Hill and Decision Desk Headquarters (DDHQ) also has the state essentially tied, with Harris leading by just 1 percentage point.
Harris has followed in the footsteps of former President Barack Obama and opted to prepare for the debate in states where her campaign is focused on winning the November election.
Obama based himself in western North Carolina in 2008 to prepare for a debate with the late Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.). He showed up Obama spoke to customers at a barbecue restaurant in Asheville, North Carolina, where he won the state in 2008, becoming the first Democrat to carry the state in a presidential election since Jimmy Carter in 1976.
Harris arrived in Pittsburgh on Thursday afternoon and was greeted by Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA).
Political watchers expect Trump to address Pennsylvania voters sometime between Friday and Monday, whether at a formally planned event or an informal stop at a coffee shop, after which he will travel from Pittsburgh to Philadelphia on Tuesday, where he and Trump will take to the stage.
“Going out for a coffee, going for a walk, you're walking around a state that's trying to generate news and interest,” the Democratic activist explained. “It's always better to not be at home. You want to be in a different environment to keep your brain engaged.”
Ms. Harris also visited Pittsburgh on Monday, where she and Mr. Biden participated in their first official campaign event. (A joint event in Maryland last month was technically a White House event and not sponsored by the Harris campaign.) On Monday, Ms. Harris and the president spoke in the International Union of Electrical Workers' auditorium, before mingling with a friendly, small audience.
Harris' presence in Pittsburgh ahead of the debate is a stark departure from Biden's now-infamous choice to prepare at Camp David ahead of his June 27 showdown with Trump. Biden spent a week at the presidential vacation home, staying completely out of the public eye, before traveling to Atlanta for the debate, only to perform so poorly that it plunged his party into crisis and ultimately led to him withdrawing from the race.
Chris Carney, a senior counsel at the Nossaman law firm and a former Pennsylvania Democrat, said preparing for the Pittsburgh debate was a way for Harris to be productive and visible in a crucial state in the race.
“Being based in Pittsburgh is efficient and allows her to use it as a base for debate prep and campaign work, particularly in the Erie area, where there is potential for Democratic votes for Trump,” Carney said.
Erie County is considered a key area in the battle to win the state. Biden won Erie by fewer than 1,500 votes in 2016 after Trump won by fewer than 2,000 votes. NPR.
Harris' running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D), campaigned in Erie on Thursday and has also been in Lancaster and Pittsburgh this week. While Harris is in Pittsburgh, running mate Doug Emhoff is scheduled to campaign Sunday in Wayne, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Philadelphia.
Todd Belt, director of the political management program at George Washington University's School of Political Management, reiterated Erie County's importance as a bellwether.
But Belt also noted that if Harris is well-received in western Pennsylvania, it could help her in the key task of narrowing Trump's margins in some rural and suburban counties where Republicans hold the lead.
“Remember, the goal is not to win the rural white vote, not to lose it like Hillary Clinton did,” Belt said. “It all comes down to statewide votes.”
Belt also suggested that the local coverage generated by an informal visit by Harris while she is in the region could be politically beneficial.
“The alternative is not to do it. If you do, you open yourself up to attacks as being elite and isolated — one of the 'coastal elites.'”
Harris' decision may not sound like a crucial one that will determine the outcome of an election.
But in a state where the margin of victory has been so narrow in the past two elections, even the smallest of advantages could make a big difference.
