Whitmer leads governors on ‘Blue Wall Bus Tour’ for Harris-Walz

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is leading governors from Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Massachusetts, and Maryland on a weeklong bus tour across the Midwest to boost support for Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign. 

EAST LANSING—A bus tour featuring governors from five states made a pitstop in one of Michigan’s biggest college towns this week, where the governors pressed their case for why voters should consider supporting Kamala Harris in this year’s presidential election.

The “Blue Wall Bus Tour,” as it was dubbed, was led by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, and featured Democratic governors from Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Maryland, and Massachusetts. 

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On Thursday, they spoke to a crowd of several dozen students at Michigan State University. 

“This is not a common thing to have four other governors come to your state to help rally people, but this is that important of an election,” Whitmer told the crowd, before quickly passing the microphone off to “one of her new best friends,” Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro.

“We’re here because we know the stakes of the election are so damn high in Michigan—and also because we love Big Gretch,” Shapiro said. “We got a stark choice and a clear contrast, and we got to do the work right now to make sure folks understand what is at stake.”

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The bus tour began on Monday and included a few stops in Wisconsin before rolling into Kalamazoo, Flint, Midland, Saginaw, and East Lansing—with additional stops scheduled in Muskegon, Grand Rapids, and Jackson this week, before it concludes in Pennsylvania.

In a statement announcing the tour, Whitmer said the trek would mark one of the last efforts to reach undecided voters across the Midwest amid the final weeks of the presidential campaign.

As such, their remarks focused largely on Harris’ plans to lower costs for working families and create more jobs, as well as trashing ex-President Donald Trump and the Project 2025 agenda.

“There’s only one ticket in this race with an economic plan that puts middle class families first: Vice President Harris and Governor Tim Walz. And I’m hitting the road with my friends … and others to make sure every midwestern voter hears it,” Whitmer said in a statement this week.

She added: “Donald Trump is only looking out for himself and his wealthy friends. In addition to losing over 200,000 American manufacturing jobs throughout his term, Trump’s reckless Project 2025 agenda would give him unchecked power to do whatever he wants and drive our economy into the ground just like he did last time he was president. We can’t let that happen.”

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Whitmer is a co-chair of the Harris for President campaign. In addition to the states included in this week’s bus tour, she has also traveled to Arizona, Texas, North Carolina, and New Hampshire, as well as organized more than 50 events to support the Harris-Walz campaign.

Shapiro—who was considered as a potential vice presidential pick before Harris chose Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz—has also emerged as a vocal surrogate for the Harris campaign.

“On one hand, you’ve got Kamala Harris, who has spent her career working to reduce gun violence in our schools and in our communities—and in Donald Trump, a guy who has been bought and paid for by the [National Rifle Association]. That is a clear contrast,” Shapiro said.

Shapiro also criticized Trump for repeatedly denying the existence of climate change, as well as appointing three US Supreme Court justices who had a big hand in overturning Roe v. Wade.

“We now have a responsibility not just to elect Kamala Harris and Tim Walz, but a responsibility to do this hard work, to leave this place better for those who come after us,” Shapiro said. “The task falls to all of you and you have an outsized role because Michigan is among the swingiest of all swing states in the nation, politically speaking of course. And it’s important for us.”

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore also spoke directly to Michigan’s college students on Thursday.

“It will be college students who will make sure that Kamala Harris becomes the next president of the United States,” he said. “We got the right one. We got someone who is brilliant, who is collaborative and who is tough. … She’s not going to do it for us, she’s going to do it with us.”

He added: “I know y’all got exams. I know y’all got parties. I know y’all got basketball season, football season. I get it. My simple ask is this: Go all out. Make sure you call all of your friends. Make sure none of you are voting alone. Make sure we’re doing everything in our power because we do not want to wake up on the morning of Nov. 6 and say ‘I could’ve done more’.”

Hundreds of thousands of absentee ballots have already been returned in Michigan ahead of Election Day. Harris has also recently intensified her campaign schedule in Michigan—with a visit to a Detroit art gallery this week, followed by a radio interview with Charlamagne Tha God.

Michigan is now tied with Pennsylvania as Harris’ most frequent campaign stop since Labor Day, with eight visits in each state, according to an Associated Press log of candidates’ events.

Harris is also returning to Grand Rapids and Detroit for large rallies on Friday, as well as coming back to Detroit again next week for a campaign event with former President Barack Obama.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

READ MORE: Michigan voters share why they’re supporting Kamala Harris at Flint rally

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