A few days after the closing of voter registration in Arizona, Democratic presidential candidate and Vice President Kamala Harris visited the state to spread a message of voting for Democratic candidates and propositions up and down the ballot in November.
The visit was a part of a Harris-Walz rally that took place at the Rawhide Event Center in Chandler on Thursday. Many ASU students and first time voters were in attendance listening to Harris’s message on the importance of every vote in the upcoming election.
"She really emphasized the importance of voting from the bottom of the ballot all the way up from your proposition of school board candidates, the city council council, to your state reps all the way up," said Cameron Bautista, a sophomore studying mathematics, political science and justice studies.
To some first-time voters in attendance, that message being emphasized throughout the rally was a necessary one.
"People seem to think that their vote doesn't matter," said Ethan Montag-Caouette, a junior studying mechanical engineering who attended the rally. "But it really does matter, especially with everything going on in the world right now. We need change in our country."
Harris's speech centered around just how crucial voting is for the upcoming election.
"Your vote is your voice, and your voice is your power," Harris said.
Along with Harris, Stephen Roe Lewis, governor of the Gila River Indian Community, highlighted the importance of Native American voting in particular.
"The Native vote has never been more important because the Native vote can and will make a difference," Lewis said.
The speakers were not the only ones spreading the importance of voting, as Bautista noted the presence of a "huge banner" in the crowd displaying the website for I Will Vote.
While voting was the main theme of the rally, it was not the only topic covered, nor was it the only talking point that students in attendance hoped to hear.
"I'm hoping for her to talk more about her policy just introduced for Medicare at home for elderly," Montag-Caouette said. "The border especially is a big thing for me, and then the economy."
Other students in attendance, like Jennifer Garcia, a freshman studying communications, were most looking forward to hearing about issues that personally connected them to Harris.
"As a woman, I feel like that's what makes me feel more connected to her because she's fighting for our rights, especially on abortion," Garcia said.
Although the end of her speech was dominated by the topic of voting, Harris did spend the first portion addressing issues like those brought up by students.
"This election is about two very different visions of our nation," Harris said. "One is focused on the past, the other — ours — focused on the future, including being focused on the issues that matter most to working families across America."
Though Harris differentiated herself from Republican candidate Donald Trump during the rally, she also placed an emphasis on the importance of unity.
"We need a president who works for all the American people because we know we have so much more in common than what separates us," Harris said. "We are exhausted with those who would try and have us, as Americans, point fingers at each other."
Dhruv Rebba, a junior studying computer science, was another student present at the rally who appreciated the sense of community that it fostered.
"It's really cool to see Arizonans just from all walks of life and also like my friends here, all together just watching her delivering a message that honestly resonates with everyday Americans," Rebba said.
This message of unity was felt by many of the students in attendance that night who appreciated the diversity of the crowd that had shown up to support Harris.
"I love all the men that are out here to support her, showing that she can do it and a woman can have power and a say in the U.S.," Garcia said.
By the end of the nearly five-hour rally, many attendees left encouraged by the performance they had seen from the Democratic candidate.
"I really wanted to see someone who is confident, charismatic, who has a really good vision for a country moving us forward," Bautista said. "And tonight she brought just that. She knew what she was talking about, she knew her vision and knew that it included all of us here in Arizona."
For students like Bautista, Reba and others, Harris's performance supported the phrase she harkened back to several times during the rally: "When we fight, we win."
Edited by George Headley, Sophia Braccio and Alexis Heichman.
Reach the reporter at sluba@asu.edu and follow @samluba6 on X.
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