House speaker to visit western North Carolina in aftermath of Helene

Speaker Mike Johnson is planning a visit to North Carolina on Wednesday, as the state continues to deal with the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.

The GOP leader announced the addition to his schedule at a campaign rally outside Dallas, Texas. The move comes as search-and-rescue efforts remain ongoing in highly impacted areas of the Tar Heel State.

Johnson says he will visit the western part of the state, which was ravaged by the storm, including floods that washed away buildings and public infrastructure.

Georgia, which was also heavily impacted, has already had visits from both Vice President Kamala Harris and Donald Trump .

Natural disasters are a prime opportunity for presidential contenders to show their chops at handling a crisis. And Johnson’s visit signifies that the party’s top leaders are paying attention to the impact and devastation, which includes Republican areas in the state.

His announcement comes as he is traveling to 65 cities throughout the month of October — 24 states — as he aims to help House Republicans keep the majority.