PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — Organizers remained tight-lipped Wednesday about the specifics surrounding Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz’s fundraising stop in Newport, set for Thursday afternoon.

While the campaign hasn’t publicly announced where the fundraiser will be held, attendees were informed Wednesday that the event will take place at Salve Regina University. Organizers had also scouted the Community College of Rhode Island’s Newport campus as an alternative.

The campaign has indicated press access to the event will be limited.

Newport Mayor Xay Khamsyvoravong told 12 News that any information about potential street closures would be communicated to residents in coordination with law enforcement.

Walz, the governor of Minnesota, is making a fundraising swing through the Northeast to raise money for his campaign with Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, including a stop in Boston on Wednesday.

The Newport event’s organizers surpassed their goal of raising at least $500,000 for the campaign as of late Wednesday, according to a person familiar with the effort. The minimum contribution to attend the event is $1,000, according to an invitation obtained by 12 News, and anyone who gives at least $10,000 will get a photo with Walz.

Former Providence Mayor Joe Paolino, who is on the host committee for the fundraiser, said security is an even bigger concern for Walz than it has been for previous major fundraising events he’s helped put together.

“Quite frankly, security has changed a great deal since the assassination attempt on President Trump,” Paolino told 12 News, citing those concerns as a reason so few details about the event have been made public.

But Paolino was upbeat about the response from the event, saying enthusiasm for the Democratic ticket has surged since Harris replaced President Biden on the ticket.

Gov. Dan McKee, another member of the Walz event host committee, told reporters he’s excited about bringing the candidate to Rhode Island. The pair know each other from serving together as Democratic governors.

“He’s a regular guy that happens to have achieved an awful lot in his life, and now he’s right on the edge of becoming vice president of the United States, who I have a personal relationship [with], and that’s why it’s a really good thing for Rhode Island as much as it is for the country,” McKee said.

After leaving Newport, Walz will travel to the Hamptons for another fundraiser later Thursday, according to the campaign.

Ted Nesi ( tnesi@wpri.com ) is a Target 12 investigative reporter and 12 News politics/business editor. He co-hosts Newsmakers and writes Nesi’s Notes on Saturdays. Connect with him on Twitter , Threads and Facebook .

Kate Wilkinson and Kristin Burnell contributed to this report.

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