Harris visits Indiana to address historically Black sorority
WASHINGTON (AP) — Voters in Indiana haven’t backed a Democratic presidential candidate in nearly 16 years. But Vice President Kamala Harris visited the solidly Republican state on Wednesday and will speak to a constituency she hopes will turn out for her in massive numbers in November: women of color.
Just three days after launching her bid for the White House following President Joe Biden’s departure from the race, Harris will address the biennial gathering of the historically Black sorority Zeta Phi Beta in Indianapolis.
It’s a moment for Harris, a woman of Black and South Asian descent, to speak to a group already excited by her historic status as the likely Democratic nominee and one that her campaign hopes can expand its coalition. In a memo released on Wednesday, campaign chair Jen O’Malley Dillon pointed to support among female, nonwhite and younger voters as critical to success.
“Where Vice President Harris goes, grassroots enthusiasm follows,” O’Malley Dillon wrote. “This campaign will be close, it will be hard fought, but Vice President Harris is in a position of strength — and she’s going to win.”
Still, Democrats face challenges as the country is nursing frustrations over higher prices following a spike in inflation, while former President Donald Trump, the Republican nominee, survived a recent assassination attempt that further energized his already loyal base. But the memo was more optimistic than the narrow path the campaign saw after the 81-year old Biden delivered a disastrous debate performance in June.