Kamala Harris hits the road with NAACP to mobilize Black voters before midterms

Harris will headline civic engagement events in Wisconsin and Georgia, where several consequential races could hinge on Black turnout.

Former U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris is hitting the road with the NAACP as she continues to use her political influence to boost Democrats ahead of the midterm elections in less than two weeks.

The nation’s oldest civil rights organization, dedicated to advocating on behalf of Black Americans, announced a partnership between NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson and Harris for civic engagement events in two key battleground states: Wisconsin and Georgia.

Vice President Harris will be in Milwaukee on Oct. 26 and Atlanta on Oct. 29 to help the NAACP with its ongoing nationwide efforts to expand voter education, protect voting rights, and strengthen grassroots civic participation. Each event will include a fireside chat featuring Johnson and Harris, who will highlight “civic participation, community leadership, and continued engagement in the democratic process,” according to the NAACP.

“The NAACP has been at the forefront of protecting voting rights and ensuring our communities have a voice in our democracy,” said NAACP President Johnson. “Our work doesn’t begin or end on Election Day. From voter education to grassroots organizing, we remain committed to building informed, engaged communities. We look forward to continuing that work alongside Vice President Harris in Milwaukee and Atlanta.”

Harris’ upcoming engagements are significant in Georgia and Wisconsin, where Democrats are on the ballot in critical races. In Georgia, Keisha Lance Bottoms is running to become the state’s first Black governor and the first Black woman elected governor in U.S. history, and U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff is running for re-election. In Wisconsin, David Crowley is also running to become his state’s first Black governor. Democrats are also hoping to flip seats in the U.S. House of Representatives and state legislatures.

The upcoming events happening in Milwaukee and Atlanta are particularly significant given the outsized role the cities’ Black voter populations could play in the election outcomes. High turnout among Black voters in both cities could tip the scales in favor of Democrats.

Harris, the nation’s first Black vice president and the first Black woman to become a party’s presidential nominee, remains popular among Black voters and could boost enthusiasm just days away from the Nov. 3 election.

“We’re super excited to have Vice President Harris back in Milwaukee again. She’s a superstar here, especially as she lived in Wisconsin during her childhood,” Chris Walton, former executive director of the Milwaukee Democratic Party, told theGrio. “VP Harris got Milwaukee to show up in 2024 with over 85% turnout in the city and actually made Wisconsin the Bluest of the Blue Wall states. She also kicked off her campaign with her first major stop as the nominee here, so she knows the value of Wisconsin, and we know her.”

Walton said Black voters in Wisconsin will be a “sludge hammer” to the Republican majorities in Congress and the Wisconsin state legislature in next month’s midterm elections

“We’re already showing up if you look at early voting with massive increases around the country, especially in the South,” the Democrat tells theGrio. “Turnout on the first day of early, in-person voting is already up 38% for Milwaukee compared to four years ago.” He added, “We’re taking our Black jobs seriously since Trump and MAGA Republicans have done nothing but cause damage to Black Americans economically since they returned to power.”

Harris’ engagements with the NAACP come as she hops across the country to support other Democrats, including U.S. Senate nominees Scott Colom in Mississippi and Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan. As theGrio previously reported, Harris ability to help Democrats win will be a crucial test of her political influence within the party as she mulls a potential third run for president in 2028.

Harris has also been meeting directly with voters to discuss how President Donald Trump and Republican policies are impacting real people.

During her recent trip to Mississippi, the former vice president recalled meeting a single mother of three who lives on a $150-a-week food budget.

“The price of food has gone up because of [President Donald] Trump’s tariffs,” Harris says in a social media video recapping the visit.

Harris said she also met with a bartender in Georgia whose health care premiums skyrocketed because of the “MAGA Republicans who fail to extend tax credits” after Republicans allowed federal subsidies to expire in December 2025.

The former vice president also met with a woman in North Carolina who runs an after-school program for kids and is struggling to afford gas to pick them up due to higher prices caused by Trump’s war in Iran.

“We got to see the connections,” said Harris. “Real people are feeling it. And please vote in the midterms.”