The Ohio senator spoke for nearly half an hour at the Reno-Sparks Convention Center, his first stop in Reno since becoming the vice presidential nominee. He barely mentioned issues unique to Nevada.
Instead, he railed against Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris, saying she was truly running the country under President Joe Biden’s administration and blaming her for issues like high gas prices.
“If your hope is dwindling as quickly as your bank account, I’ve got good news,” Vance said. “In November, help is on the way.”
Vance also shared a message about what loyalty means. For him, it’s taking a bullet for the country, referring to Trump surviving an assassination attempt, serving in the Marine Corps, and closing the border.
“If you are in this country illegally, start packing your bags right now because Donald Trump is coming back,” Vance said.
He also briefly shared the stage with Republican senate candidate Sam Brown, who is challenging Democratic incumbent Sen. Jacky Rosen. Nevada GOP chair Michael McDonald and national committee member Jim Degraffenreid, Washoe County commissioner Mike Clark, and a number of state lawmakers were also present. Before Reno, Vance rallied in Henderson too.
Many attendees have made up their minds — they’re fired up about voting for Trump in November. Some mentioned they would have been open to seeing different choices for his running mate, like former Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard or Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, but said they would’ve stood behind Trump’s decision no matter what.
Dozens of rallygoers lined up early morning, hours before the doors opened, including Sacramento resident Norma Perez who traveled to Reno the night before the rally. She was excited when Trump chose Vance.
“He’s not a straight politician. He grew up like most of us, with a lot of difficulties, a lot of struggles, but he went ahead and look at where he is right now,” Perez said. “I don't like when you have these people that have parents have been in politics, grandparents have been in politics, and they don’t know how to earn a living.”
Voters also commented on Vance’s young age, 39, and his difficult childhood resonated with them, something he mentioned at the Reno rally. In his memoir “Hillbilly Elegy,” Vance wrote about his family history of poverty, substance abuse, and violence.
KUNR’s Nick Stewart contributed to this story.
