(JOHNSTOWN, Penn.) — Vice President Kamala Harris told reporters she was “feeling very good about Pennsylvania” while campaigning on Friday in the key battleground state, even as both supporters and detractors came out for the occasion.
In an unannounced stop to Classic Elements, a cafe and bookstore in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Harris told reporters, “I am feeling very good about Pennsylvania, because there are a lot of people in Pennsylvania who deserve to be seen and heard.”
“I will be continuing to travel around the state to make sure that I’m listening as much as we are talking,” Harris said. “And ultimately, I feel very strongly that — got to earn every vote, and that means spending time with folks in the communities where they live. And so that’s why I’m here.”
She added, “We’re going to be spending a lot more time in Pennsylvania.”
Harris and former President Donald Trump remain locked in a tight race in Pennsylvania, with 538’s presidential polling average for Pennsylvania showing less than a percentage point between the candidates as of Friday afternoon.
Both campaigns will look to win the state, which Biden won by about a 1% margin in 2020 — four years after Trump won by slightly less 1%.
Before she spoke with the media, Harris chatted with the store’s owner while Democratic Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman and his spouse Giselle Fetterman looked on.
Harris spoke about a small business owner neighbor she had growing up who was a “second mother” to her. Harris also praised the staff for their work.
When Harris went into the main seating area of the cafe, a patron called out, “Kamala, we love you!” to which Harris responded, “I appreciate you, thank you” to applause and comments of “Madame Vice President.”
Speaking to the patrons, Harris said, “We’re doing it together. But I wanted to come to Johnstown … I wanted to come and visit this small business — you know, a lot of the work I care about is about building community, right? There are many ways to do that … one of them is our small businesses.”
But Harris encountered both supporters and detractors outside of the bookstore.
Near the bookstore, people behind temporary fencing held signs that were both supportive of Harris and supportive of Trump.
One person could be heard chanting “USA!” while another chanted “We’re not going back” — which can often be heard at her campaign events.
And one person could be seen holding up a sign that said, “Even my dog hates Trump.”
Earlier, when she landed in Johnstown, there was a large crowd gathered at the airport hanger; Harris was greeted by the Fettermans and Johnstown Mayor Frank Janakovic.
As the motorcade drove to the bookstore, some healthcare workers lined a street holding up middle fingers and a sign that said, “Harris sux.”
The visit came ahead of a Friday evening rally Harris is set to hold in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, and amid a battleground-state swing by Harris, running mate Gov. Tim Walz, and others launched after the ABC News presidential debate on Tuesday.
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