I-75 reopens as Kamala Harris leaves metro Atlanta after speech

Kamala Harris’ departure from metro Atlanta on Friday is adding a twist to the city’s afternoon traffic.

The vice president and Democratic presidential nominee made a speech at the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre just before 3:30 p.m. and addressed abortion rights after a ProPublica report linked the deaths of two Georgia women to the state’s GOP-backed policies. She left the venue around 4 p.m.

Harris’ motorcade shut down I-75 as she traveled to Dobbins Air Reserve Base in Marietta. She will continue on to Madison, Wisconsin, for a campaign event before returning to Washington on Friday night.

She landed at Dobbins at about 2:25 p.m., and her motorcade headed a short distance south to the Cobb venue. The interstate was shut down temporarily as she traveled to the center.

The closures affected one of the heaviest traffic corridors in metro Atlanta at a time when volume was high.

In addition to road closures, the Federal Aviation Administration issued temporary flight restrictions around Dobbins from 1:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Harris’ visit won’t be the last from a major political candidate before the November general election; senior aides to former President Donald Trump say the GOP nominee has plans for multiple visits to Georgia soon. Trump is expected to announce a rally in Savannah next week, with several additional trips in the works, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

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