Kamala Harris’ Campaign Charges Into Florida With ‘100 Days of Action’ To Flip Key Battleground State

Local Democratic Party campaign workers say that they haven't seen this kind of energy and excitement since the Obama campaign.

As Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign is now officially 100 days from the general election, it focused its efforts around a “100 days of action” weekend, encompassing Florida, typically a Republican stronghold.

According to the Tallahassee Democrat, the Harris campaign’s efforts in Florida began in earnest on July 26 to try and flip the state, targeting its estimated 30% of undecided voters using a variety of methods.

Jasmine Burney Clark, the director of the Harris campaign in Florida, told the outlet that they view Florida as a key battleground state and are determined to win.

“We are working for every vote in this state … it’s one we are determined to win,” Clark told the Democrat.

True to her word, Clark and the rest of the Harris campaign got 7,000 campaign volunteers to sign up in Florida during the 72 hours immediately after Harris announced her candidacy for the presidency. Local Democratic Party campaign workers told the outlet that they hadn’t seen this kind of energy and excitement since the Obama campaign.

Jennifer Griffith, the chair of the Pinellas County Democratic Executive Committee, told the Democrat that they had to expand their original plans to accommodate anticipated workers.

“I have never seen anything like this. We had to expand to a second shift on Saturday and add two more for Sunday because more people are trying to sign up. The maximum capacity for our office is 55 people.” Griffith said.

The campaign is actively targeting lapsed or no-party voters, who research indicates could potentially be swayed by Harris’s messaging. According to Tara Newsom, the director of St. Petersburg College’s Center for Civic Learning and Community Engagement, those voters lean moderate and are primarily interested in economic and education issues and support family planning and reproductive choice, things Trump’s platform lacks emphasis on.

“Harris offers a stark contrast to Trump, who is embracing an ultra-right messaging that sounds like the party of grievances, which makes the optics of Harris much more moderate,” Newsom said.

According to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, the Harris campaign is also determined not to repeat the mistake of the Clinton campaign and used a similar plan of action in Wisconsin, another state the campaign sees as a battleground state.

At a rally in West Allis on July 23, Harris told the crowd how important she believes Wisconsin will be in determining the next President of the United States of America. “The path to the White House goes through Wisconsin, and we are counting on you right here in Milwaukee.”

Harris officially opened her campaign in Wisconsin, a move that Marquette University political science professor Julia Azari believes is an important distinction between Harris’ campaign and Clinton’s campaign in 2016.

Azari says it is “a direct response to any of the inevitable comparisons with the Hilary Clinton campaign and the big critiques. (Clinton notably did not campaign in Wisconsin) I think it illustrates a likelihood that this will be the tipping point state.”