Democratic ‘Blue Wall’ governors make case for Harris in final stretch

Written by ABC AUDIO on October 20, 2024

(WASHINGTON) — With just 16 days until Election Day, the Democratic governors of the three “Blue Wall” battleground states touted the strength of Vice President Kamala Harris’ ground game, and predicted she would prevail in their states but acknowledged how close the presidential race is.

“I think Kamala Harris wins, but make no mistake, it’s close,” Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania told ABC News’ “This Week” co-anchor Martha Raddatz. “We’re not afraid of that… It causes us to get out and work, and that’s what we’re doing.”

Shapiro, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers sat down with Raddatz in the Pittsburgh area for an exclusive interview that aired Sunday. The interview came during the governors’ bus tour through the critical battlegrounds that some pundits say represent Harris’ best path to the presidency.

The three so-called “Blue Wall” swing states are key to a Democratic victory. All three voted for Donald Trump in 2016 — the first time since 1992 that they backed the Republican candidate. Four years later, President Joe Biden won them back.

If Harris wins Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania — plus the single electoral vote in Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District — she would hit the 270-electoral vote threshold needed to win the White House, even if she lost the other four battleground states.

The race is statistically tied in all three “Blue Wall” states, according to 538 polling averages.

“Listen, the only people that are not surprised about these polls are us three. We all expect this. We are not upset about it, we’re not scared. We’re determined to make sure we do everything in our power to win this thing,” Whitmer said.

Evers said he believes the race is still “undecided” at this point because many voters simply aren’t paying much attention yet.

“I talk to people just about every day that are, are torn about what to… how they’re going to vote. And so I think there are people that can be convinced, absolutely,” Evers said. “There are people that, frankly, don’t follow this on a daily basis.”

With 19 electoral votes up for grabs — the most of the battleground states — Pennsylvania is the prize both campaigns want to win. The margins have been exceedingly close in recent presidential elections, with Trump taking the state by 0.7 of a percentage point in 2016 and Biden winning by 1.2 points in 2020.

No Democrat has won the presidency without Pennsylvania since 1948. Both campaigns have invested heavily in the Keystone State, pouring in more than $500 million collectively in TV ad spending and reservations through the end of the year, the New York Times reported.

“I think it’s a must-win, and we want to win here,” Shapiro said. “I think both candidates believe that Pennsylvania is critical. I just think we’ve got a better candidate. We got a better message.”

But Trump’s message resonates with about half of the voters in their states, polls show. Asked to explain Trump’s appeal, Shapiro acknowledged that people are frustrated with government.

“I think what people are craving are leaders who know how to get stuff done for them,” Shapiro said. “Donald Trump talks a good game about that. Now he has a history of failing to deliver over and over and over again. And I think part of our responsibility here is to make sure we’re letting folks know that … when he had the keys to the White House before, he failed the American people time and time again.”

“He’s a charlatan,” Whitmer added. “He’s convinced people that he is strong when he’s actually very weak.”

In all three states, Democrats need to see high turnout among the voting blocs that traditionally back their candidates, like Black voters concentrated in the metropolitan areas.

In Wisconsin, the decline in Black voter turnout since 2012 has been steep, dropping from 78% in 2012 to 43% in 2020, according to Census data.

But Evers said his state is in “a much better place this time” and pointed to an improved ground game to reach voters.

“I feel confident that it’s going to be much larger than the last time. And it’s important to make sure that all people in Wisconsin feel that this election means something to them, and so we’ve upped the ground game in all our areas around the state, whether it’s rural, whether it’s in the Milwaukee area,” he said.

In neighboring Michigan, Democrats remain concerned that Arab and Muslim American voters will not turn out for Harris due to frustrations with the Biden administration’s support for Israel as the war and suffering in Gaza continue a year after Hamas’ brutal attack against the U.S. ally.

Michigan is home to nearly 400,000 Arab Americans, according to the Arab American Institute. The Uncommitted Movement decided not to endorse a candidate in the presidential race, and the Abandon Harris campaign put its support behind Green Party candidate Jill Stein’s bid.

Pressed on how to convince these voters to support Harris, Whitmer said that dialogue is important. She also argued that Harris is the only candidate committed to finding solutions.

“At the end of the day, do you want a leader who’s going to throw gas on the fire to keep you angry so that you tune out?” asked Whitmer. “Or do you want one who’s going to try to get in there and solve problems?… That’s what Kamala Harris offers.”

Given what happened after Trump lost the 2020 election, whether he concedes defeat if he loses to Harris remains an open question. Trump has already started to cast doubt on the integrity of the election, baselessly claiming last week in a podcast interview, “If the election is not rigged, we’re going to win. If it is rigged, I guess that’s a different story.”

All three governors voiced confidence in the citizens of their states to lawfully administer election law and count the votes, while raising concerns about Trump.

“He’s already laying the groundwork to undermine the outcome of this election,” Whitmer said. “They are trying to pull the wool over the American public’s eyes once again, and we’re anticipating that they’ll continue to try to do that when they lose this election, assuming they lose this election. But I’m going to make sure every vote gets counted.”

“I’ve got great confidence in the good people in Pennsylvania to count the votes accurately and to respect the will of the people. I do not have confidence that Donald Trump won’t whine about it, won’t put out dangerous rhetoric and mis- and disinformation,” Shapiro added. “We’re prepared for anything Donald Trump throws at us, and we’re going to make sure the will of the people is protected.”