Vice President Kamala Harris’ rally in Ann Arbor momentarily fell into a moment of awkward silence after an unexpected request from the Democratic vice presidential nominee.
The vice president was making her final stop in Michigan on Monday with a packed rally in the college town along with her running mate Tim Walz and singer Maggie Rogers.
At one point during her speech, the crowd began chanting her name ‘Ka-ma-la, Ka-ma-la, Ka-ma-la’ when the vice president attempted to change the situation.
‘Now I want each of you to shout your own name. Do that,” Harris said with a laugh. “Because it’s about all of us.”
A few people began to murmur, but the vast majority of the crowd fell silent in confusion, lowering signs and looking around.
The vice president quickly recovered and continued her speech: “I have fought my entire career to put people first.”
Vice President Kamala Harris arrives at her rally in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on Monday. It was his third campaign stop of the day in the crucial swing state.
Harris was accompanied at her event by her running mate Tim Walz, who also traveled to Wisconsin on Monday.
Some people noted the moment on social media, calling it “embarrassing” and “awkward.”
But overall, Harris performed well in the deep blue area. According to the campaign, 21,000 people attended the event.
The vice president largely stuck to her speech on Monday, delivering an encouraging message.
He notably made no mention of the latest controversy surrounding his rival, former President Donald Trump, or the backlash from his rally in New York City, where a number of speakers made offensive comments on Sunday.
“Now is the time to get out the vote, Michigan,” Harris said as the crowd chanted “vote, vote, vote.”
At one point, the vice president spoke directly to the youth attended by a large number of University of Michigan students.
“I love their generation, I really do,” he said, noting that they are “rightly impatient for change.”
Harris avoided the latest controversy surrounding Trump and the racist comments made at his rally at Madison Square Garden in New York during her speech, instead sticking with her stump at her event in Ann Arbor.
Harris and Walz at their rally in Ann Arbor. 21,000 people attended, according to the campaign
He said that young people only know the climate crisis and are leading the fight to protect the planet. He also praised them for their fight for school safety and for defending reproductive freedom, since they have fewer rights than previous generations.
He asked people in the crowd to raise their hands if they are voting for the first time. A significant number of hands went up.
It comes as the vice president needs to attract young people to help her get there, but questions remain about whether young people will show up, especially as some are frustrated by the ongoing war in Gaza and the Biden administration’s response.
Monday’s rally was briefly interrupted by protesters, as has been the case at numerous Harris events.
“Hey guys, I hear you on the Gaza issue,” Harris responded. ‘We all want this war to end as soon as possible and get the hostages out. And I will do everything in my power to make it so.’
The vice president was joined in Michigan by her running mate, who also energized the crowd with a “blue vote,” similar to the university’s “go blue” cheer.
Bruce Springsteen performed at Harris’ rally in Philadelphia on Sunday
John Legend also performed at the Philadelphia rally.
Harris and Walz made their remarks under a banner that read “When we vote, we win” in the blue and gold of the University of Michigan. Attendees held blue and gold “vote” signs.
Before her remarks, Grammy-nominated singer Maggie Rogers performed. He took a break from his tour to appear saying that “nothing is more important” than the election.
“I have to face the reality of what’s going to happen over the next eight days, and to tell you the truth, it’s terrifying,” Rogers told the crowd between songs.
“These are such wild and unprecedented times, the energy feels so high and the future so uncertain,” he said.
“Voting is the key to the future,” Rogers added. “You can fight the fear of Donald Trump.”
The line of people to get in wrapped around Burns Park and through the residential neighborhood. Some residents set up lawn chairs outside their homes to watch the gathering crowd and perhaps catch a glimpse of the motorcade. Most yards in the area had Kamala Harris signs.
Ann Arbor is a college town with a large Democratic population.
Former President Barack Obama, photographed in a crowd, also appeared at a pro-Harris rally in Philadelphia on Monday. There, she criticized Trump for holding a “racist, sexist and bigoted” event at Madison Square Garden the night before.
Singer Maggie Rogers waves to the crowd during a Kamala Harris rally where she performed. He said nothing is more important than the election right now.
Rogers sang several songs, including ‘Light On,’ at the rally. He also sported a Harris-Walz pin and a blue tie.
The crowd as Maggie Rogers performed in Ann Arbor at the Kamala Harris rally
The county voted overwhelmingly for Biden at 72 percent in 2020. In 2016, it was also deeply blue, but a significant number of registered Democrats did not go to the polls.
More than 45 million people have already voted in the 2024 election, including nearly 1.9 million from Michigan.
People have been mailing ballots in the state for weeks. Early in-person voting began Saturday with wait times to cast a ballot lasting more than an hour.
Ann Arbor set the record for the most people in the state casting ballots on the first day of in-person early voting.
Harris’ rally in Ann Arbor was her third event of the day in the swing state, as polls show the race is virtually tied in the so-called “blue wall” state.
While many students from the University of Michigan attended, families and seniors from the area also attended.
Brenda Cheek, 68, had never attended a political event before, but she wanted to witness what she believes is a historic moment she may never live to see again.
She came to the rally directly after voting in person early and was sporting her “I Voted” sticker.
Cheek said she is worried about her Social Security and believes Trump is not qualified to even appear on the ballot.
‘He’s trying to completely eliminate the middle class, regardless of whether you’re a Republican, independent or Democrat. He doesn’t care, he just wants the vote,” Cheek said.
Supporters listen as Harris addresses them during the rally in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Supporters cheer for Harris and hold signs that say “VOTE” in the University of Michigan colors.
Many of the people who attended Harris’ rally were college students, but there were also some young families in the crowd, as well as local seniors.
The view from behind Kamala Harris as she spoke at her rally in Ann Arbor
Harris mingles with supporters after concluding her speech.
Several university students queuing to attend the rally told DailyMail.com that their main issue in the election was reproductive rights. Another important issue was climate change.
The latest Quinnipiac University poll shows Harris with a three-point lead among likely voters, 49 percent to Trump’s 46 percent. CBS News’ battleground tracker has Harris at 50 percent and Trump at 48 percent in the state.
The vice president began her day in Michigan with a stop at Corning’s next-generation Hemlock semiconductor facility in Saginaw, where she toured the assembly line and met with workers.
The facility last week received $325 million as part of the CHIPS and Science Act passed under the Biden administration.
Corning is making an investment to produce solar panel parts using materials produced by Hemlock, which will create approximately 1,300 jobs in Saginaw, according to the Harris campaign.
From there, Harris stopped by a union training center in Macomb, Michigan, where he met with workers.