U.S. Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) speaks on stage as actor Billy Porter (seated) looks on, at a get-out-the-vote event in Wilkinsburg Saturday Oct. 19, 2024 (Photo by Jason Phox for the Capital-Star)
As the presidential campaign enters its final three weeks, Democratic governors from key swing states embarked on a bus tour to try to connect with undecided voters and persuade them to vote for Vice President Kamala Harris, the party’s nominee.
The Driving Forward Blue Wall Bus Tour featuring governors Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, Tony Evers of Wisconsin and Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, traveled across western Pennsylvania on Saturday, making stops at canvass events in Slippery Rock, Moon and Baldwin before an evening get-out-the-vote event in Wilkinsburg with U.S. Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa) and actor and Pittsburgh native Billy Porter, who moderated a game of Jeopardy, asking the politicians questions about Pittsburgh and the current election.
“I just want to thank you for what you’re doing to help Kamala Harris and Tim Walz first,” Casey said at the event. “What are you doing to help me win this Senate race, and what are you doing for our whole ticket? We’re so grateful for your help. This is a critical moment for our country.”
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Elon Musk, the owner of X (formerly Twitter), recently endorsed GOP presidential nominee, former President Donald Trump, and has held several town halls in Pennsylvania to get people to register to vote. Campaign finance records show that Musk gave around $75 million to America PAC, created to “support candidates who champion Secure Borders, Sensible Spending, Safe Cities, Fair Justice System, Free Speech and Self-Protection.”
Musk is scheduled to appear Sunday at a town hall in Pittsburgh with Casey’s opponent, GOP candidate Dave McCormick.
President of the Young Democrats of Allegheny County Lauren Williams said Saturday she sees Musk’s involvement as “noise.”
“I think Elon Musk trying to cosplay a Pennsylvanian is just weird, frankly,” she said. “Him using Twitter as a way of targeting Pennsylvania voters, it’s just weird. Once again, I think he’s not saying anything new — he’s not saying anything true, either.”
Josh Green of Pittsburgh, who attended Saturday’s event said he saw a connection between the energy of political rallies and a wave of enthusiasm for voters casting their ballots.
“I think democracy doesn’t work if people don’t participate,” Green said. “So I think events like this do contribute because it gets the people who do participate, who actually attend the event, charged up, and I think a few of them are probably inspired to call their loved ones or talk to their neighbors and encourage them to make sure they vote.”
The governors kicked off the Blue Wall bus tour on Monday in Wisconsin, and continued into Michigan before arriving in Pennsylvania. The three states are the critical “blue wall” swing states that Democrats count on in presidential elections. On Sunday the governors will wrap up the tour with additional stops in central and eastern Pennsylvania.
Since being on the bus tour the governors have gotten to know each other a little better; Shapiro shared that Evers enjoys a daily Egg McMuffin.
Williams said meeting potential voters where they are is key to reaching people who might not otherwise cast a ballot, and who might feel disconnected from the political arena.
“I think we have seen time and time again where voters, black, brown women, young folks are disenfranchised from the voting system or disillusioned from government and voting,” Williams said. “And so by coming into the neighborhoods and coming into where they are and meeting them where they are, this campaign is showing you that voting is not only important, but that voting is something that you should be involved in.”
In Pennsylvania, the presidential contest is extremely tight, with Harris and Trump deadlocked in a bevy of polls.