HARRISBURG — Less than two weeks after he was wounded in a shooting at a rally in Butler, former President Donald Trump returns to Pennsylvania on Wednesday for a campaign rally at the state Capitol. Now the official 2024 Republican presidential candidate, Trump will work to shore up support for his candidacy in a key swing state in a presidential race that has changed dramatically over the past month.
After a destitute debate performance in June, President Joe Biden dropped his reelection bid on July 21 and immediately endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris at the top of the ticket. Democrats have rallied around Harris, and she has secured enough commitments from state delegates to effectively secure the nomination. That is expected to become official at the Democratic National Convention next month — or possibly sooner.
The attempted bombing of Trump’s Butler rally on July 13 left rallygoer Corey Comperatore dead and two others injured. The assailant shot Trump in the ear with an AR-15-style rifle and was killed by law enforcement at the scene. Director of the U.S. Secret Service Kimberly Cheatle resigned on July 23 after an intense congressional hearing in which Democrats and Republicans were dissatisfied with her answers about how the attacker managed to get within shooting distance of the former president.
Two days after the shooting, Trump announced his vice presidential running mate as U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio, who was introduced at the Republican National Convention. Trump and Vance have campaigned together and separately in several swing states, but Vance has not yet arrived in Pennsylvania. U.S. Senate candidate Dave McCormick, who also attended Butler’s rally, is expected to join Trump in Harrisburg.
Harris has not yet chosen her vice presidential running mate, with Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro considered one of several candidates for the job. Harris’ campaign said slow Tuesday that she will make a campaign visit to Philadelphia next Tuesday with her “future vice presidential running mate” in tow.
Questionnaire A Susquehanna poll released Tuesday showed Harris leading Trump by 4 percentage points in Pennsylvania, 47% to 43%. Independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had 3% support in the poll conducted between July 22 and 28.
Before he addresses the audience in Harrisburg, Trump will be questioned at the annual convention of the National Association of Black Journalists in Chicago.
Pennsylvania’s 19 electoral votes make her the most influential candidate among key swing states, and both campaigns see her as key to winning the White House.
Biden defeated Trump in Pennsylvania in 2020 by just over 80,000 votes.
This is a developing story that will be updated.
