President Biden and first lady Jill Biden will travel to Pennsylvania Sunday to begin their July voter outreach events amid the fallout from the president’s poor debate showing and concerns among Democrats.
Biden is set to deliver remarks at a church service in Northwest Philadelphia before traveling to Harrisburg, Pa., for an event with union members and local Democrats, his campaign said.
He will be joined by Gov. Josh Shapiro (D-Pa.), Lt. Gov. Austin Davis, both Pennsylvania Democratic Senators Bob Casey and John Fetterman, Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker (D) and other local leaders.
The Pennsylvania visit follows Biden’s recent trip to Madison, Wis., on Friday and is part of the campaign’s efforts to target battleground states.
The president has faced mounting criticism after his debate performance and calls for him to step aside to allow someone else to take on former President Trump.
After participating in an on-camera interview on Friday in Wisconsin, Biden has yet to instill enthusiasm in his voter base as they worry he doesn’t have what it takes to beat Trump this fall.
The Pennsylvania and Wisconsin visits are part of the Democratic Party’s “aggressive July voter outreach blitz,” the campaign said.
The Bidens and Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff will be traveling extensively to each battleground state this month.
The travel plans come on the heels of voters questioning if the 81-year-old president is mentally and physically capable of continuing to campaign, let alone handling another four years in office. Biden dismissed questions about his age in the recent interview.
The plan over the next several weeks also includes a $50 million media campaign and an outreach plan to knock on 3 million doors.
“While MAGA hate and extremism will be on full display at the Republican National Convention, Team Biden-Harris will be focused on doing the critical outreach to our diverse coalition that wins elections,” the campaign said in an email.
This trip will be Biden’s tenth to the Keystone State this election cycle. It’s a state he won by less than 82,000 votes in 2020.
According to The Hill/Decision Desk HQ, Trump has a 57 percent chance of winning Pennsylvania this time around.