Eau Claire Hosts Competing Harris-Walz, Vance Campaign Events

Eau Claire became the focus of the 2024 Presidential race on Wednesday, hosting events for both the Harris-Walz campaign and Trump-Vance campaign.

Vice President Kamala Harris and her newly named running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, held a rally at the Eau Claire Event District on Wednesday. They were greeted by an enthusiastic crowd of supporters from across the midwest region, many showing up to wait in line hours before Vice President Harris and Governor Walz’s scheduled speeches. Even in the hours before their arrival, the crowd engaged in cheers and chants like “We win” and “We’re not going back.”

Campaign staff estimate that the total size of the crowd for their rally was about 12,000 people.

In their speeches, Vice President Harris and Governor Walz focused on their vision for the future of the country, including increasing access to healthcare, protecting abortion rights, and strengthening the middle class. Both also criticized the Project 2025 agenda and efforts by former President Donald Trump and Vice Presidential nominee JD Vance to distance themselves from the agenda’s policies.

Governor Walz also leaned into the neighborly attitude between his home state of Minnesota and the host state of Wisconsin. His speech included calls for Americans to help each other out whenever possible, but not to get too involved in their personal decisions in reference to abortion care.

On the other side of Eau Claire, Senator Vance took a different approach at his event. He criticized Vice President Harris’ performance in her current role, and hammered topics like border security, the fentanyl crisis, and the country’s reliance on energy from overseas. Vance’s event was not open to the public, but some of his supporters still gathered outside of the event at Wollard International.

Vance also criticized Vice President Harris’ choice of Governor Walz as her running mate, and said he would like to debate Governor Walz.