Obama, the last Democrat to win NC’s electoral votes, to stump for Harris in Charlotte

Former President Barack Obama is coming to Charlotte on Oct. 25 to stump for Vice President Kamala Harris, campaign officials told McClatchy exclusively.

Obama was the last Democrat who ran for president to win North Carolina, in 2008, and many in the party believe Harris could be the candidate to break Republicans’ winning streak.

Since Harris took over President Joe Biden’s campaign mid-summer, Gov. Roy Cooper has repeatedly said he has “a 2008 feeling” about her candidacy.

Despite Obama being the first Democrat to win the state since 1976, North Carolina is still considered a battleground state. That’s because the margin between the two presidential candidates remains narrow each four-year cycle.

In 2020, former President Donald Trump won North Carolina with just 1.3% of the vote, but ultimately lost the election to Biden and Harris. Trump did not have a closer margin in any other state he won that year.

Because of that, both campaigns have invested time, money and energy into rallying voters across North Carolina.

Democrats made North Carolina part of their campaign strategy very early in the campaign season. The Trump campaign’s frequent visits didn’t begin until after Harris declared her candidacy.

Friday’s visit from Obama marks one of a long list of surrogates who have come in the past week to the swing state on Harris’ behalf. Others have included former President Bill Clinton, Harris’ running mate and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and California Gov. Gavin Newsom.

Trump plans to visit multiple cities in North Carolina on Monday including Asheville, Charlotte and Greenville. Trump’s running mate, Sen. JD Vance, has also made multiple trips to the state in the past week.

Further details about Obama’s trip weren’t immediately available.

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