Harris to mark 60th birthday with Atlanta church visits as Trump hits McDonald’s
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Democrat Kamala Harris and her Republican rival Donald Trump are essentially tied in the race for US president in the most competitive states.
PHOTOS: REUTERS
ATLANTA/PHILADELPHIA - Democrat presidential candidate Kamala Harris will kick off her 60th birthday on Oct 20 with two church visits in Georgia, where she plans to rally early voters, while her Republican rival Donald Trump spends time at a McDonald’s outlet in Pennsylvania.
Ms Harris and Trump, who are essentially tied in the race for president in the most competitive states, have sharpened their attacks in recent days, while drumming up support for early votes by mail or in person with just 16 days left until the Nov 5 election.
After being joined on Oct 19 in Detroit by hometown rapper Lizzo and in Atlanta by pop icon Usher, Harris will get a birthday boost from another music legend, Stevie Wonder, on Oct 20 when he drops by one of the churches she plans to visit.
Vice-President Harris and former president Trump, 78, are focusing on Pennsylvania, Michigan and a handful of other states likely to decide the election, where both parties have strong support and electoral results have been close in past cycles.
Ms Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, will double down on Oct 20 on a “Souls to the Polls” initiative aimed at using gospel performances, national and state faith leaders, elected officials and others to mobilise voters.
Ms Harris, who was raised in the teachings of the black church and sang in a church choir, will attend a service and speak at New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Stonecrest, Georgia, about 50km east of Atlanta, the campaign said.
She will also speak at Divine Faith Ministries International in Jonesboro, just south of Atlanta, where she plans to encourage worshippers to exercise their voting rights. Wonder will attend and is slated to perform.
After her events, Ms Harris will record an interview with civil rights leader Al Sharpton that will air on the night of Oct 20 on MSNBC.
Mr Walz will attend a service in Saginaw, Michigan, while his wife Gwen will visit a church in Las Vegas.
Ms Harris will need strong results in the majority non-white cities of Detroit and Atlanta and their surrounding suburbs to repeat President Joe Biden’s 2020 wins in Michigan and Georgia.
Trump, after escalating personal attacks against Ms Harris on Oct 19, told Breitbart News he would work at a McDonald’s restaurant in Pennsylvania on Oct 20 “just for fun” to mock Ms Harris. Trump adviser Jason Miller said Trump would be working in the french fries area of the restaurant.
Ms Harris says she worked at a McDonald’s when she was young, but Trump has said he does not believe her.
Trump also plans a rally in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, in the late afternoon.
The former president is seeking to take advantage of what he felt was an improved position for him in opinion polls that show a deadlocked race. Some voters already have mail-in ballots in the Pennsylvania, the biggest prize on Election Day among battleground states. REUTERS
