USA – Kamala Harris is bringing her newly-minted presidential campaign to Georgia, a state that some Democrats now consider up for grabs in the closely contested election.

The vice-president held a star-studded campaign rally in Atlanta on Tuesday, at which she challenged her Republican rival Donald Trump to meet her on the debate stage. Pop star Megan Thee Stallion and rapper/singer Quavo performed, while Democratic Senator Raphael Warnock also addressed the crowd of about 10,000 people.

The possibility of Democrats winning in the battleground state was a stretch one month ago, but some analysts now believe a new face on top of the ticket and a fresh burst of energy may change everything. Ms Harris replaced Mr Biden as the presumptive Democratic nominee, after the president announced he was withdrawing from the race.

“It has been a reset button in so many ways,” Amy Morton, the CEO of Georgia-based consulting firm Southern Majority, told the BBC. “It completely changed the landscape of Georgia. “Taking the stage in Atlanta to a raucous crowd on Tuesday evening, Ms Harris said the momentum in the race was shifting. She described her “people-powered” campaign as the underdog in the race, but pointed to how Mr Biden carried the state in 2020.

“I am very clear the path to the White House runs right through this state,” she said.  Ms Harris later turned to the subject of September’s presidential debate, which Mr Trump has not fully committed to yet. “Donald, I do hope you’ll reconsider to meet me on the debate stage, because as the saying goes, if you got something to say, say it to my face.”

Swing states like Georgia, which Mr Biden won by the narrowest margin in 2020, are fiercely contested because they can lean either to Republicans or Democrats and play a decisive role in presidential elections. It’s a state Republicans are looking to flip back red. Donald Trump will also be campaigning in Atlanta on Saturday – at the same venue as Ms Harris – to cement his support in the swing state. (BBC) 

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