Josh Shapiro spent debate night in Philly, speaking at a Harris watch party and stopping by the spin room

Gov. Josh Shapiro spent debate night as a key surrogate for Vice President Kamala Harris, speaking at the Harris-Walz campaign’s debate watch party and appearing in the spin room.

“After Kamala Harris prosecuted the case against Donald Trump tonight, they remember,” Shapiro told reporters in the spin room following the debate in Philadelphia. “They remember the chaos. They remember the way he ripped away people’s fundamental freedoms, particularly women’s freedoms in this country.”

As the popular governor of a key battleground state, the Montgomery County native has emerged as a top cheerleader for the Harris campaign. His prominence on debate night signaled that he’ll continue in that role through Election Day.

“I’m going to continue to go out and talk about the person I’ve known for nearly 20 years, a person I think, who is incredibly well-prepared to serve as the 47th president of the United States, someone who’s going to be great for Pennsylvania,” Shapiro said.

Speaking to a large gaggle of reporters in the Pennsylvania Convention Center beside a skinny blue “SHAPIRO” banner marking his place in the crowd of surrogates, Shapiro argued that former President Donald Trump did little to win over undecided voters.

“For Donald Trump to have any shot, he’s got to stop creating ‘others’ in our society and attacking other people,” Shapiro said. “Look, I’ve been someone who he has attacked in the past. Obviously he continues to attack the vice president. That’s not helping him convince people who are undecided that he has the steadiness, that he has the sort of compassion and the ability to unite people in a way that allows us to move our country forward.”

Shapiro also credited Harris with baiting Trump into some moments where he lashed out or repeated lies on stage.

“You know this guy can’t stay focused on anything which is what makes him very very dangerous,” Shapiro said of Trump. Harris bringing up his rallies and supporters who leave early touched on a nerve, Shapiro said. “Pointing out a fact like that insults him because he’s only thinking about himself. He’s not thinking about the American people.”

Still, the swing state governor who was under consideration to be Harris’ running mate said he still predicts an extremely close race in Pennsylvania.

“Getting those last couple of yards to get into the end zone is really, really tough. The good news is, what Kamala Harris did tonight, showing Donald Trump to be the chaotic figure that he is laying out her vision for this commonwealth and this country…I think she’s got the wind at her back, and I think she helped herself in a big way tonight.”

Earlier in the evening, Shapiro appeared at the Harris campaign’s watch party at Cherry Street Pier in Old City before the debate began at the National Constitution Center.

Once a top contender for the job of Harris’ running mate, Shapiro has been on the campaign trail to stump for the vice president and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, whom Harris ultimately chose as her No. 2, the moment that pick became official, delivering a speech at the Philadelphia rally where Harris and Walz debuted as a ticket.

Shapiro is no stranger to attacks from Trump as the former president has unleashed several verbal incursions against the governor, even after he was passed over as Harris’ running mate.

Trump called Shapiro a “highly overrated Jewish governor” on Truth Social after Shapiro’s primetime speech at the Democratic National Convention, adding that Shapiro “has done nothing for Israel.” Trump’s running mate, JD Vance, has repeatedly suggested Shapiro wasn’t chosen as Harris’ running mate because of his Jewish faith.

In response, Shapiro said Trump was “obsessed” with him and that the former president was promoting “antisemitic tropes.”

“Jewish elected officials care about a whole lot of things like … how we give our kids a great quality education, how we make sure our streets are safe, how we create opportunity,” Shapiro said. “And yeah, we care about Israel, too. But last I checked the job of the governor of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania did not involve foreign policy with Israel.”