Oprah and Lady Gaga bring joy back to Kamala Harris’ final rally

Vice President Kamala Harris held her final campaign rally Monday night, 106 days after President Biden left office, with a heavy dose of celebrity, trying to recapture the joy that characterized her first weeks on the campaign trail.

At a rally in Philadelphia outside the Philadelphia Museum of Art, near the steps where Rocky Balboa ran in the movie “Rocky,” she implored the rowdy crowd to make a plan to vote.

“Another day, another day in the most important election of our lives,” she said. “And momentum is on our side.”

The rally was intended as a show of force—bringing celebrities to the largest city in the most important swing state, which was also the birthplace of American democracy. It featured Fat Joe, Lady Gaga, Ricky Martin, the Roots, will.i.am and Oprah Winfrey.

Read more:At the end of a long campaign, Harris and Trump are spending much of the final day in crucial Pennsylvania.

The event was part of a simulcast that lasted more than four hours in several cities, including Las Vegas and Phoenix. Minnesota Governor Tim Walz addressed the crowd in Milwaukee. Sugarland performed in Raleigh. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer spoke from Detroit, where Jon Bon Jovi also performed.

“You don’t know who you’re voting for?” said Fat Joe, who introduced a musical number by fellow Puerto Rican Ricky Martin in a speech in Philadelphia criticizing former President Trump for the comedian’s insulting of Puerto Ricans during his rally last week. “You’ve got to be kidding me at this point.”

Lady Gaga performed a heartfelt version of “God Bless America” ​​and spoke about female empowerment, inspiring the crowd. Winfrey brought 10 first-time voters on stage and asked some why they voted.

“We are voting for healing, not hate,” Winfrey said.

The mood was festive, but Democrats were tense. Opinion polls show the race with Pennsylvania, the largest of the seven battleground states, nearly tied.

“Everyone is a little nervous, and that’s understandable,” said Sarah Grimaldi, 22, who has worked throughout the campaign to engage young voters with a feminist group.

She said she came to do last-minute outreach and alleviate some of the concerns about Lady Gaga. “Yelling when you’re stressed helps.”

Read more:Last minute voting in elections? Here’s what you need to know

Democrats are hoping their ground game, two years in the making, will push Harris to the top. The campaign says about 110,000 volunteers have worked in the state since Harris took over for Biden three months ago and was on track to knock on 5 million doors.

Tal Tigai, a 43-year-old property developer, came with her 12-year-old daughter Nina and their friend Ella, also 12. Eight years ago, Tigay took Nina to a Hillary Clinton rally to see the first woman. presidential candidate.

“Unfortunately, we didn’t win the tournament, but it was important for my daughter to be here at this moment,” Tiguy said.

Violet Perloff, a freshman at George Washington University in Washington, rescheduled her test and returned home by train to celebrate voting for the first time. She brought a bejeweled Harris sign she made in her dorm room.

“I had the opportunity to show my support,” she said. “So I thought: I want to do this. “I want to come out and show that I care about my rights and I care about the future of this country.”

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This story first appeared in Los Angeles Times.