In the final weeks before the election, campaign announces a swing-state bus tour across Pennsylvania and Michigan, featuring former Trump voters who now support Kamala Harris.
WASHINGTON – Thursday, October 10, 2024 – Republican Voters Against Trump launched a swing-state bus tour of Pennsylvania and Michigan, its first-ever campaign of this kind. The tour will swing through both states, with stops in Philadelphia (10/17), Pittsburgh (10/18), and Detroit (10/19), and features real former Trump voters from these states who now support Kamala Harris. The tour kicks off on Thursday, October 17 and runs through Saturday, October 19.
The tour will make stops at several different locations to speak with the press, engage local voters, hand out swag, and make the case for Harris in the battleground communities where the election will be decided. It will also visit landmarks in all three cities, which will be announced in the coming days. And it will make stops at several live events being hosted by The Bulwark, where our Republican voters against Trump will be interviewed before a live audience.
Photo available for press. Credit: Republican Voters Against Trump
Our voters will appear on stage at events in each city, and we will hold a media availability prior to each event at the venue. Please email Tony Franquiz at [email protected] to be added to the media list for these events and press availabilities. See below for a breakdown of the tour stops and the voters who will be featured at each:
Philadelphia — Thursday, October 17 @ 7 pm ET ** Media availability at 5 pm ET **
- Robert from Philadelphia, PA: An attorney and lifelong Republican who used to lead Hispanic outreach for the GOP and once ran for statewide office as a Republican
- Mike from Media, PA: A former Trump voter who opposes Project 2025 and said “I’m super excited to vote for Kamala Harris because she’s not delusional”
Harrisburg— ** Media availability at 10:30 am ET **
- Our bus will stop for a media avail at the Sheetz at 3695 Paxton Street, Harrisburg, PA 17113, where more than 12 voters will speak to press, along with Sarah Longwell and other anti-Trump leaders
Pittsburgh — Friday, October 18 @ 7 pm ET ** Media availability at 5 pm ET **
- Dani from Ellwood City, PA: A two-time Trump voter whose vote for Harris will be the first time she has supported a Democrat for president
- Dave from Pittsburgh, PA: A lifelong Republican who broke with the party over Trump and said he “is willing to destroy the very core of our way of life to remain in power”
Detroit — Saturday, October 19 @ 8 pm ET ** Media availability at 6 pm ET **
- Damian from Clio, MI: A business owner and veteran who recently appeared on TV ads and billboards running throughout Michigan in support of Harris
- Jackie from Stockbridge, MI: A two-time Trump voter who said “Trump is not running for America, he is running for himself” and appeared in billboards in support of Harris
The bus tour coincides with a new $4.2 million expansion of our Pennsylvania ad campaign, running through the election. As part of the expansion, we will be adding 55 new billboards statewide showing former Trump voters who no longer support him, bringing the total number of billboards to 114. You can view their locations here.
And we will expand our TV and radio ads to the Wilkes-Barre market, in addition to Philadelphia, Harrisburg, and Pittsburgh. We will also be blanketing the entire state with digital and streaming (CTV) ads.
This additional spend now brings our total Pennsylvania campaign to $10 million, a significant addition to our initial commitment. The campaign includes a series of testimonial ads featuring real former Trump voters talking direct-to-camera about why they now support Harris.
“This is what it all comes down to: Either we live up to America’s promise as the world’s oldest and freest democracy, or we hand over the keys to Trump and his MAGA authoritarianism,” said Sarah Longwell, Executive Director of Republican Voters Against Trump, who will be available to speak to press and will appear at various stops along the bus tour. “These battleground states are where it’s all going to be decided. It’s time to get out there and make the case about the urgent need to defeat Donald Trump one last time.”
The bus tour is open to the press. Any media wishing to come, or to speak with the Republican voters against Trump for interview, should contact Tony Franquiz at [email protected].
# # #