With the 2024 U.S. presidential race heating up, both Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris are targeting critical battleground states this week, but each is also making strategic moves in other important regions to gain momentum.
Trump Targets New York’s Competitive Districts
In an unconventional move for a Republican presidential candidate, Donald Trump is taking his campaign to Uniondale, Long Island, on Wednesday. This suburban New York area has become a key battleground, not necessarily for the presidency, but for the Republican Party’s control of the House of Representatives.
Trump’s visit is aimed at helping vulnerable Republican incumbents in New York, particularly Rep. Anthony D’Esposito, a former NYPD detective who won his congressional seat in 2022. D’Esposito is facing a tough re-election fight in a district that Joe Biden won by about 15 points in 2020. As Republicans try to defend 18 seats in Biden-won districts across New York and California, Long Island has emerged as a crucial front in this battle.
Trump also used his visit to promise New York voters that he would “get SALT back,” referring to his plan to eliminate the cap on state and local tax (SALT) deductions that was introduced in the 2017 tax legislation he signed. The SALT cap has been a significant issue for residents of high-tax states like New York, New Jersey, and California, where it has led to increased tax burdens for many middle- and upper-income earners.
In a post on his social media platform, Truth Social, Trump claimed that the Republican Party has “a real chance of winning” New York for the first time in decades, although New York has historically leaned heavily Democratic in presidential elections.
Harris Courts Latino and Black Voters
On the Democratic side, Vice President Kamala Harris is working to secure the support of two critical voter groups: Latinos and African Americans, particularly in swing states like Arizona, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and the Midwest.
On Wednesday, Harris will deliver a speech at the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute’s 47th Annual Leadership Conference in Washington, D.C., as she continues to court Latino voters. This week, Harris also made an appearance on the Nueva Network with popular personality Chiquibaby, where she promoted her proposals for tax deductions for new small businesses and stressed her support for a “pathway to citizenship” for immigrants who have earned it.
Harris has made it a point to highlight her experience prosecuting border cases as California’s attorney general, reinforcing her credibility on immigration and law enforcement issues, both of which are important to Latino voters in battleground states.
On Tuesday, Harris spoke with the National Association of Black Journalists in Philadelphia, where she took aim at Trump, saying voters need to ensure he “can’t have that microphone again” due to the divisive rhetoric he has used throughout his political career.
Assassination Attempt Shadows Trump’s Campaign
Trump’s campaign appearances this week come on the heels of an apparent assassination attempt while he was golfing at his Florida resort on Sunday. A Secret Service agent spotted an assailant with an AK-47-style rifle hiding near Trump’s golf course. The suspect, Ryan Routh, was later apprehended, and Trump emerged unscathed from the incident.
Despite this, Trump has not altered his campaign schedule. After his rally in Flint, Michigan on Tuesday, he is pressing ahead with plans to campaign in North Carolina and Washington, D.C., later this week. His running mate, Ohio Senator J.D. Vance, is also actively campaigning, with an event scheduled in Raleigh, North Carolina on Wednesday.
What’s at Stake in 2024?
Both Trump and Harris are focusing their energy on battleground states, with Trump attempting to regain his footing after the attempted attack, and Harris working to solidify key voting blocs. With tight races for control of Congress also in play, both candidates are balancing their presidential ambitions with efforts to influence down-ballot races that could determine which party controls the House and Senate in 2025.
The election is shaping up to be one of the most contentious in recent history, with issues like taxes, immigration, and crime at the forefront of voters’ minds as both parties vie for the support of key constituencies across the nation.