SAVANNAH – The first joint visit to Georgia for the Democratic presidential ticket of United States Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz took place this afternoon in Chatham County. Cities like Savannah, the largest city in the county, where the Harris/Walz bus tour began on Wednesday, Aug. 28, in Southeast Georgia, is oftentimes forgotten voter swaths. And it is easy to see why. During the closed presidential primary in March, only a small percentage of the county’s nearly 19,000 registered voters participated. Former President Donald J. Trump won the Republican primary (former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley was second) and current United States President Joseph R. Biden won the Democratic nod in large order.
Harris is no stranger to Georgia after having now visited the state seven times this year and 16 times since becoming vice president. Walz made his first-ever visit to the state as a vice presidential hopeful.
7 p.m. – End of the road…for now. The Harris/Walz bus tour will begin again on Thursday morning in Savannah and end with a rally, the duo’s first, at EnMarket Arena in Savannah. The rally is scheduled to begin in the late afternoon, and there is an expectation of a large crowd.
6:20 p.m. – Everybody’s got to eat. After a long afternoon of touring, Harris and Walz dropped by Sandfly BBQ on Ferguson Ave. for dinner. A small establishment by any measure, the crowd inside, outside, and around Sandfly BBQ were surprised to see the VP and Governor.
Photo by Donnell Suggs/The Atlanta Voice
After Walz, a former public school teacher and football coach said a couple of encouraging words, Harris told the students that they were “leaders” and welcomed them to the “role models club.”
“Being a role model means there will be members of your family, people in your neighborhood, and they will say, ‘Hey, that’s how it’s done.'”
5:10 p.m. – Friday Night Lights came a couple days early as Harris and Walz made a stop to Liberty County High School in Hinesville. The band room was packed with football players, cheerleaders, and of course, the band as Harris and Walz were greeted with screams and applause upon entering.
3:50 p.m. – Harris and Walz walked over to greet to a group of Savannah State University students that were awaiting their arrival. It was hard to hear what either Harris or Walz said to the students with Air Force Two being so close.
3:45 p.m. – Savannah Mayor Van Johnson and Georgia Congresswoman Nikema Williams greeted Harris and Walz when they deplaned Air Force Two onto the tarmac at the Georgia Air National Guard Air Dominance Center.