U.S. Sen. and Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance will campaign in North Carolina this week. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
Three of the four candidates at the top of the Republican and Democratic national tickets are making campaign stops in the Tar Heel State this week.
The visits are part of a surge in visits from presidential nominees and their surrogates that make clear North Carolina’s 16 electoral votes are a target for both parties.
The four candidates at the top of the ticket have scheduled eight campaign events in the swing state this month as of Monday.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, running mate for Vice President Kamala Harris, kicks off the week with a rally in Asheville on Tuesday.
It’s his second visit to the Tar Heel State since becoming the Democratic vice presidential nominee. He made a trip to Raleigh on Aug. 29, grabbing milkshakes at Cook Out with Gov. Roy Cooper before addressing campaign volunteers and attending a private fundraising event.
The campaign has yet to release further details about the Asheville rally.
The Republican nominees are also headed to North Carolina this week.
U.S. Sen. JD Vance is holding a rally in Raleigh on Wednesday. He’s set to speak at Union Hall, a venue with a capacity of around 700, according to its website.
Vance will use the event to discuss inflation, grocery costs, and the housing market according to the campaign.
The Republican vice presidential candidate previously appeared in Asheboro alongside former President Donald Trump on Aug. 21. He’s also made a couple of surprise visits to Greenville, attending a private fundraising event last week and appearing at the East Carolina University football game over the weekend.
Vance was scheduled to stop in Raleigh and Oakboro on Aug. 8, but the events were canceled due to weather.
Trump closes out the week with a rally in Wilmington on Saturday. His campaign says he’ll speak about jobs, inflation, and the economy at the Aero Center, but the former president rarely sticks to a script.
This marks Trump’s seventh visit to North Carolina and first to Wilmington this year. He was set to hold an event there in April, but it was canceled due to weather.
Last week, Harris held rallies in Charlotte and Greensboro on Thursday, building upon enthusiasm following her widely praised performance in a Tuesday presidential debate. Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff and Minnesota First Lady Gwen Walz championed reproductive rights in Raleigh on Sept. 9.
As the election approaches, both campaigns are focusing on North Carolina and the six other battleground states of Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.
The four presidential and vice presidential nominees made a combined three visits to the state in July, five in August, and have scheduled eight so far for this month.
September marks the first full month since the parties’ national conventions during the summer, where candidates officially received and accepted nominations.
The earlier months saw only a handful of visits by Trump and Harris to North Carolina. Harris formally entered the race on July 21, replacing President Joe Biden after he withdrew.
Trump narrowly won the Tar Heel State by 1.3 percent in 2020. Democrats are hopeful of turning the state blue for the first time since Barack Obama won North Carolina in the 2008 presidential election.