INDIANAPOLIS — People gathered outside of the Indiana Convention Center during Vice President Kamala Harris' speech to Zeta Phi Beta's Grand Boule on Wednesday.
Some say they didn’t want to miss a historic moment.
"She's a woman and a Black woman so it's history,” Charley Johnson said. “Both are history. I brought my daughter to let her know women can do any and everything. We can run America.”
She was one of a few dozen people who made time to see the vice president's motorcade. The Indianapolis native says she hopes if the vice president is elected, it can bring everyone together.
"Stop the violence first and foremost,” Johnson said. “I am tired of the killing, it's horrible. I just want everyone to come together. I want peace a whole lot, that's major to me.“
Others who visited called it a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
"You know, not everyone will get the opportunity to experience this so I wanted to come out and support,” Shaina Bradley said.
WATCH MORE | VP Harris heading to Indianapolis
Bradely was in town for a conference. She stepped out to watch the motorcade. She came with Alexandra Schroll, who feels like Harris running can help bring the country together.
“It's nice to have that unity again or that feeling of unity,” Schroll said.
Advocacy groups turned out too.
Planned Parenthood, Indiana Conservation Voters and the Indiana Muslim Network joined the crowd. They hope she will tackle their issues.
"We are hoping that her climate agenda will expand on the Landmark Inflation Reduction Act,” Delaney Barber-Kwon, with the Indiana Conservation Voters, said.
"We hope that she calls an immediate and permanent cease fire in Gaza as well as send ample amount of aid to the people that are suffering there,” Maliha Zafar, the Executive Director of the Indiana Muslim Advocates Network, said.
Since President Joe Biden has dropped out of the presidential race, Vice President Harris is the presumptive Democratic candidate.
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All Indiana Democratic delegates have pledged their support to her. They will cast their vote during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago next month.
The Indiana GOP took notice of the Vice President's visit and sent the follow statement in response:
We hope she enjoys her time away from D.C. and learns a thing or two about how real Americans live.Hoosiers know that a Harris presidency would be MORE RADICAL than the last four years have been. Biden was supposed to be a reasonable Democrat; imagine what Kamala would be like. Kamala Harris has a track record of supporting radical policies throughout her career. She does not represent Hoosiers or regular Americans.
- Harris failed to prosecute criminals to the fullest extent of the law when she was a prosecutor.
- Harris has expressed support for sanctuary cities, and said “we need to probably think about starting from scratch ” when referring to ICE.
- Harris encouraged people to donate to the Minnesota Freedom Fund, which bailed rioters out of jail.
- Harris supports defunding the police and decriminalizing illegal immigration.
U.S. Senator Mike Braun, the Republican nominee for Governor, released the following statement regarding Vice President Kamala Harris’ visit to Indiana:
“Joe Biden tasked Kamala Harris to be our border czar, and it’s been an unmitigated disaster, as every day thousands of illegal immigrants are following through our southern border with an end goal of either taking Hoosier jobs or bringing drugs to our state, and it needs to stop. With Donald Trump, J.D. Vance, and myself, we will secure our southern border, make our communities safe again, and enact my Freedom and Opportunity Agenda to grow our economy and keep Indiana great.”
