A Tumultuous 2024 Presidential Race Takes Off in Eau Claire

Frederica Freyberg:
The eyes of the nation were once again on Wisconsin this week, when Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris hosted a huge rally in Eau Claire with her new running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. The Republican VP, JD Vance, came to town too. “Here and Now” reporter Murv Seymour was there.

Man:
Show me what democracy looks like!

Crowd:
This is what democracy looks like!

Murv Seymour:
The push for key votes in key swing states in the 2024 presidential election has made its way to rural parts of western Wisconsin.

Man:
Show me what democracy looks like!

Crowd:
This is what democracy looks like!

Murv Seymour:
For the second time in just over two weeks, candidate Harris and Air Force Two are back in Wisconsin as she fires up support in her run for the White House.

Sarah Godlewski:
So let’s make sure Tim Walz goes from Midwest nice to Midwest vice!

Murv Seymour:
In front of her biggest crowd ever in Wisconsin, an estimated 12,000 people packed the fairgrounds of the Eau Claire event district in the area known as High Country.

Joe Hagaman:
I think we had most of western Wisconsin here and half of Minnesota.

Tony Evers:
Then you have my good friend and our next-door neighbor, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz.

Murv Seymour:
With top Wisconsin Democrats paving the way…

Bon Iver:
Hello, everybody. We love you.

Murv Seymour:
…and a mini-concert from hometown, Grammy-winning singer Bon Iver, this time candidate Harris has come to introduce her newly announced running mate to rural Wisconsinites. With hopes that they and other Midwesterners like what vice-presidential candidate and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz brings to the ticket as a former military man, teacher and high school football coach.

Tim Walz:
I don’t need you telling me about our health care. I don’t need you telling us who we love, and I sure the hell don’t need you telling us what books we’re going to read.

Kamala Harris:
The path to the White House runs right through this state, and with your help, we will win in November. We are going to win.

Murv Seymour:
Getting inside High Country to see this Democratic duo hasn’t been easy. Some walked for miles and waited in traffic for hours to be a part of the growing momentum of the Harris campaign.
What do you like about Walz as a candidate for vice president?

Joe Hagaman:
He’s just one of us. He’s a good old upper Midwest boy and, as they say, you can sit down at a coffee shop with Walz and feel right at home. He’s just like my next-door neighbor.

Pam Weaver:
Well, I think it will be really important because there’s still a lot of rural. And maybe he can relate to that dynamic of the population that maybe Kamala wouldn’t. But I think that will really help open some people’s eyes.

Murv Seymour:
This isn’t the only high-powered political campaign swinging through Eau Claire. Right now across town, vice presidential Republican candidate JD Vance is here to also rally the troops.

Male Reporter:
What can you do for Wisconsinites up here in the upper northwest?

Murv Seymour:
Vance spoke directly to Wisconsinites in a 30-minute question and answer session, specifically with Wisconsin-based reporters.

Female Reporter:
What is your winning message?

Another Male Reporter:
Why would people in Wisconsin want to have a beer with you?

Murv Seymour:
He accuses candidate Harris of dodging the media.

JD Vance:
She’s running from the media, refusing to answer tough questions and hoping that a basement campaign is going to earn her a promotion.

Murv Seymour:
He says he wants people to know he’s stumping in the shadows of the Harris-Walz campaign to offer voters a contrast. With less than three months until Election Day, it’s unlikely this will be the last time these two campaigns cross paths in Wisconsin, as they continue to crisscross battleground states to woo voters in small, large and rural rallies. Reporting for “Here & Now,” I’m Murv Seymour.