ATLANTA — Vice President Kamala Harris on Tuesday night challenged former President Donald Trump to commit to a presidential debate during a raucous rally in Atlanta that featured some 10,000 attendees, celebrity appearances and another rare feature of Democrats’ rallies lately: fun.
In a roughly 21-minute speech, Harris, now just nine days into her position atop the Democratic ticket, contrasted her policy goals with Republicans’ agenda. But the high point of her remarks came toward the end, when she mentioned the former president’s reluctance to commit to a matchup he had initially agreed to for Sept. 10, when President Joe Biden was still his opponent.
“Well Donald, I do hope you’ll reconsider to meet me on the debate stage,” she said, as the cheers grew louder. She appeared to savor the delivery of the next line, drawing it out for maximum effect: “Because as the saying goes, ‘If you’ve got something to say, say it to my face.’”
The crowd exploded.
At another moment, as Harris contrasted her record as a former prosecutor with Trump’s felony convictions, supporters chanted “Lock him up!” — a twist on the chants of “Lock her up” that first broke out at Trump’s rallies in 2016, aimed Hillary Clinton, the Democratic nominee then.
Last month, Democrats who were licking their wounds after Biden’s disastrous performance on a debate stage, also in Atlanta, had tempered their expectations for Georgia, which he won by less than 12,000 votes four years ago. Now, Harris’s visit and place atop the ticket have nurtured a heightened level of optimism about their chances of keeping the state blue, despite Trump’s current polling lead. In Harris, several Democratic leaders say they see a chance to galvanize several key voting blocs, including young people and voters of color.
“Yeah, we’re changing the culture again,” the rapper and Migos frontman Quavo, who, instead of performing, gave a brief address encouraging supporters to vote. His address — as well as an earlier performance by hip-hop star Megan Thee Stallion — underscored the pronounced shift in energy behind Harris.
Harris, who is seeking to build enthusiasm among key voting demographics, was in hyper-friendly territory in Atlanta, the Democratic engine of an all-important battleground state. The size of her rally Tuesday night dwarfed Biden’s 2024 campaign events in both scale and enthusiasm, rivaling the types of crowds Trump regularly draws for his rallies in similar spaces. (Trump will hold his own event in Atlanta at the same venue, the Georgia State University convocation center, on Saturday.)
As Harris started to outline a presidential agenda, she framed her bid in terms of the past versus the future. She condemned Republicans for their policies on abortion access and she promised to restore access to the procedure and also expand voting rights.
She also aimed to blunt attacks against her record on immigration. She noted that as California’s attorney general, she helped lead a border state. She also condemned Trump for paying lip service to border security while failing to secure it himself as president. On the economy, Harris pledged to lower costs and stem price gouging “on Day One” of her presidency.
Before she spoke, several Georgia figures, including a former Democratic candidate for governor, Stacey Abrams; Rep. Nikema Williams, who serves as state Democratic Party chair; and the state’s Democratic U.S. senators, Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff, addressed supporters.
While it remains unclear if the vice president can translate the energy of the early days of her campaign into overwhelming turnout to match the wave of voters who have powered the party’s top-of-ticket victories for the past two election cycles, the signs of grassroots enthusiasm were palpable. Before the program and in between speeches, rallygoers danced to hip-hop and R&B and sung along to songs the DJ played.
Harris, who at one point had to calm the crowd enough to keep speaking, recognized the role that her most excited supporters would play.
“The path to the White House runs right through this state,” she said. “You all helped us in 2020 and we’re going to do it again in 2024.”
The elation over the moment spilled outside the arena, just beyond downtown Atlanta, roughly 1 mile from the gold-domed state Capitol. Another crowd waited, many of them stragglers who had tried and failed to get inside.
Dr. Marcus Polk said he had an invitation, but pulled up too late. He was sitting in a red Porsche across the street. He said the energy he could feel bubbling up in Atlanta reminded him of former President Barack Obama’s first run for president.
He was going to vote for Biden, and do so happily, he said. But he also acknowledged the disenchantment that was discouraging some voters. Harris was turning that around.
“I think it’s just a breath of fresh air,” he said of Harris’s candidacy. “It’s new. It’s young. It’s exciting.” It was harder to argue that neither candidate was appealing, as they might have before, he said. “People are clearly seeing an option now.”
Nilka Holland had braved roughly an hour of traffic to drive from McDonough, a suburb southeast of Atlanta. She was stuck outside, leaning against the railing, and yet her excitement was undiminished. “This is history-making,” she said.
After the event had ended and the huge crowd came pouring outside, Holland asked people passing by if they had extra campaign signs to share. One person after another rebuffed her. Finally, someone was willing to part with one.
She read the message on it out loud: “When we fight, we win!”
“That’s right,” she said.
She pumped her fist and smiled.
This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
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