Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at campaign fundraiser in San Francisco
SAN FRANCISCO -- On Saturday afternoon, Vice President Kamala Harris wrapped up what's likely to be her final Bay Area fundraiser before the general election. Organizers said it was a sold-out event attended by hundreds of supporters at San Francisco's Palace of Fine Arts.
Among her supporters, Tamila Gresham was excited to see Harris again.
"I feel like Kamala Harris is the candidate of my lifetime and this is one of the most important elections that I've ever experienced," Gresham said.
Gresham worked with Harris when Harris was California's attorney general. The Oakland resident believes in Harris so much that she is now campaigning for her in the battleground state of Arizona.
"I've been out there since August. My mom lives out there. I've been out there knocking on doors, working with the campaign out there and actually flew in here yesterday just to come to this. And I'll be heading back on Monday to get back on the ground," Gresham said.
President Joe Biden narrowly won Arizona four years ago.
"My mom is so excited as well. Every day we're out in our Kamala gear. It's been really great and to be able to knock on those doors and have real conversations face-to-face with people who are undecided or might not be sure about voting. I know at the end of the day I've got one more vote for her," Gresham said.
Some supporters attending the fundraiser said they plan to do the same -- campaign for Harris in those battleground states closer to Nov. 5.
"Panic. It's all panic," said Tod Cohen, a Harris supporter since 2008 when she ran for state attorney general. "You always have to know nothing is set until every vote is counted."
Some supporters brought their kids to see Harris, they said, as a way to inspire the next generation.
"We have a huge sense of pride. We're all South Asians. So it's nice to see a woman and nice to see a South Asian and this just shows what's possible," said Harris supporter Priyanka Agarwal.
Supporters said that, at the Saturday fundraiser, Harris talked for roughly thirty minutes to a sold-out crowd.
"She talked about how she was really excited to be home, back in California and how so many people in the room had been there from the very beginning of her career." Gresham recalled.
Gresham said she was energized by the speech. She'll be campaigning and won't be back home in Oakland until after the election.