ATLANTA — Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz stumped Tuesday in metro Atlanta, talking with college-age voters at two campuses.
The emphasis in Atlanta was on young voters – many of them voting for the first time in the election seven weeks from today.
Hours ahead of Walz’s arrival, students from Spelman and Morehouse College were getting signs and staking out spots on the edge of the Atlanta University Center where Walz was expected to visit.
The vice presidential candidate’s itinerary was never widely released publicly – a nod to security concerns that have heightened since two incidents this summer, described by secret service as assassination attempts, against former president Donald Trump.
But the Minnesota governor made buoyant appearances in Georgia – first at a restaurant in Macon, then at Georgia Tech where he spoke with student leaders and then encouraged a modest crowd of students to go vote.
"This is going to be so razor close, it is not out of the realm to think folks in here getting five more groups of folks to get five more groups of folks -- that this presidential election could run through Rocky Mountain Pizza," Walz said as the crowd cheered the shoutout to a neighborhood eatery.
In Macon, Walz visited an Eisenhower-era restaurant called H and H. In an interview, Walz outlined how he and presidential candidate Kamala Harris aim to take on inflation and a sometimes bumpy economy.
"Especially around home ownership, making sure we’re building three million more affordable homes, making sure we’re making the down payment assistance there," Walz outlined. "Drug prices, especially for seniors, making sure we’re putting a cap on those, that’s making a difference. And then making sure we’re investing in rural communities like the investment acts that have created a lot of new jobs in terms of infrastructure and other things."