VP-elect Kamala Harris to campaign in Columbus as runoff election draws near
Vice President-elect Kamala Harris is coming to Columbus on Monday to campaign for Georgia’s two Democratic challengers in the U.S. Senate runoffs.
Her visit is focused on energizing the party base and turning out early voters. Harris traveled to Georgia twice before the November election, and this most recent visit comes on the heels of Vice President Mike Pence’s rally in Columbus Thursday.
National political figures have flocked to the state in the weeks leading up to the January runoffs. Pence has held multiple rallies in Georgia cities, President-elect Joe Biden appeared in Atlanta Tuesday, and President Donald Trump rallied in Valdosta earlier this month.
Republican surrogates will also appear in Columbus Saturday. Texas Congressman Dan Crenshaw and Alabama Senator-elect Tommy Tuberville will appear alongside Columbus state Senator Randy Robertson at Chattabrewchee Southern Brewhouse for an early voting rally. The rally begins at noon.
Former Vice Presidential candidate and current U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine (D- Virginia) was set to appear in Columbus to campaign on behalf of Democrat Jon Ossoff. His visit was canceled because Kaine has to be in Washington D.C. for Senate business, according to Ossoff’s campaign.
More details about Harris’ Columbus visit are expected to be released soon. She’ll also visit Suwanee Monday. News of Harris’ visit was first reported by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and confirmed by campaign officials.
Laura Walker, chair of the Muscogee County Democratic Party, said she did not immediately know the location of Harris’ event. The vice president-elect’s visit, however, shows that Columbus is shaping up to be a battleground city. Since Nov. 3, Republicans have outspent Democrats in the Columbus media market, $21 million to $5.1 million. That spending gap is the most disproportionate Republican advantage in the state, Politico and media-tracking firm AdImpact reports.
Walker said a visit from Harris will energize Democratic voters.
“It’s an area where there’s still a lot of room for Democrats to turn out even more, and it’s an area where I think Republicans felt weak in the General Election,” she said. “This is probably worth millions in ad spends to have Kamala Harris come here and talk to Democrats.”
National polls show the U.S. Senate races are neck-and-neck. FiveThirtyEight, a digital news website known for data reporting, regularly publishes polling averages. As of Friday, Republican U.S. Sen. David Perdue leads Ossoff, 48.9% to 48.2%. Republican incumbent Kelly Loeffler and Democrat Raphael Warnock are tied at 48.4%.
This story was originally published December 18, 2020 at 9:54 AM.