With UAW endorsement secured, Kamala Harris sets Aug. 7 for Detroit rally

DETROIT, MI — United Auto Workers leaders announced the organization’s endorsement of Kamala Harris for president on the eve of the Democrat’s planned rally in a city synonymous with auto manufacturing.

“Our job in this election is to defeat Donald Trump and elect Kamala Harris to build on her proven track record of delivering for the working class,” UAW President Shawn Fain said in a statement.

Along with the endorsement, the UAW statement revealed Harris would host a rally in Detroit on Wednesday, Aug. 7.

While the Harris campaign earlier had announced plans for a rally next week, the specific date of the event was not revealed until the UAW statement. Campaign officials later confirmed the rally was scheduled for Wednesday evening.

The venue has yet to be announced.

UAW officials said union members plan to attend the rally to support Harris.

Why? Fain, in his statement, said the U.S. stands “at a crossroads.”

“We can put a billionaire back in office who stands against everything our union stands for, or we can elect Kamala Harris who will stand shoulder to shoulder with us in our war on corporate greed,” Fain said. “This campaign is bringing together people from all walks of life, building a movement that can defeat Donald Trump at the ballot box. For our 1 million active and retired members, the choice is clear: We will elect Kamala Harris to be our next president this November.”

The Harris campaign revealed a packed schedule next week for the vice president. It’s a calendar that sends her across battleground states which, like Michigan, could determine the outcome of this fall’s election.

Harris will travel to Philadelphia on Tuesday, Aug. 6; to Eau Claire, Wisconsin on Wednesday, hours before her stop in Detroit; to Research Triangle, North Carolina on Thursday, Aug. 8; to both Savannah and Phoenix on Friday, Aug. 9; and to Las Vegas on Saturday, Aug. 10.

The Harris campaign said the rallies will include the Democrat’s running mate, who has yet to be named.

Since President Joe Biden exited the 2024 race for the White House last week and endorsed his vice president, Harris has been on the campaign trail in key battleground states. This week, Harris campaigned in Atlanta and Houston.

She has yet to visit Michigan as a presidential candidate. She did campaign as a vice presidential incumbent in Kalamazoo on July 17, five days before Biden bowed out in her favor.

Detroit has served as a frequent stop for presidential candidates this year.

The week before Biden dropped out, he hosted a rally inside Detroit’s Renaissance High School gymnasium. It was the president’s third trip to Detroit in 2024.

Trump, the Republican nominee seeking to return to the White House, campaigned in the city in June.