Gov. Josh Shapiro and Mayor Cherelle L. Parker stressed Kamala Harris’ economic plan in get-out-the-vote campaigning in Philly

Gov. Josh Shapiro and Mayor Cherelle L. Parker teamed up on Sunday in Philadelphia to speak to business leaders at a get-out-the-vote event for Vice President Kamala Harris, calling her the partner they need to realize the economic plans they have for the city and state.

Their backdrop was Germantown’s P4 Hub, a coworking space for entrepreneurs of color run by the firm DiverseForce. Both Democratic political leaders said they need a partner in the White House who will work with them to govern and serve Philadelphia and Pennsylvania; that collaborator is Harris.

Parker recalled her own historic election, becoming the first female mayor of Philadelphia, saying that when she finally arrived in her new office in January, many people asked her how she felt.

“I felt vulnerable,” Parker told the crowd of about 80 people. “I felt vulnerable because I understood that, although I had just personally achieved this historic milestone in this city, none of it mattered without intergovernmental cooperation and planning and support … I realized that, without the White House in support of our agenda in Philadelphia, that none of the promises that I made will I ever be able to bring to fruition.”

Calling Pennsylvania “the swingiest of all swing states in the nation,” Parker encouraged everyone to vote and pointed to the 2020 election, when President Joe Biden won the state by roughly 80,000 votes. She credited that victory to high voter turnout in Philadelphia, Bucks, Chester, and Montgomery Counties.

Parker said that while she can feel high energy backing Harris when she’s talking to voters, “we are still in underdog mode.” She recalled hearing Philadelphians concerned about the high prices of groceries and said that Harris’ economic plans will help families in need.

“Some of us, who are products of humble beginnings, like myself, we begin to think about what that means to the men and women who are trying to make ends meet on a daily basis,” said Parker. “So when you hear our vice president talk about an opportunity economy that just doesn’t allow people to just get by, but an economy that allows them to be equipped with the tools that is access to economic opportunity that will help them get ahead — that is what we have to be excited about.”

Following the mayor, Shapiro made the case for Harris’ plan to create an opportunity economy.

“She’s someone who’s going to make our economy healthy, and someone who’s going to help make sure that when you’re sitting around the kitchen table, that you’re going to be better off because Kamala Harris is president,” said Shapiro. “On the other side, Donald Trump, his economic policy is all about giving his buddies a tax cut, screwing over most of you in this room, and making it harder for us in Pennsylvania.”

Shapiro said he’s focused on two things as governor: fighting for Pennsylvanians’ freedoms and getting stuff done, which has become his motto. “This election now is a referendum on those two things — which presidential candidate is really for our freedoms and which presidential candidate is going to get stuff done for all of us,” Shapiro said.

To be effective, Shapiro said, he needs a partner as president who will work with Pennsylvania, like Biden did last year when providing assistance to reopen I-95 in 12 days after a gasoline tanker fire caused a partial collapse of the major East Coast highway in Philadelphia.

The governor ended his remarks by underscoring the decisive power of Pennsylvania voters and noting the state’s and nation’s historic roots. “Remember William Penn founded this commonwealth on the promise of religious tolerance, on the promise of inclusion. Now, I’m not sure Penn ever imagined I’d be standing in a Black-owned business as a Jewish governor, talking to all of you about an AAPI woman who wants to be the president of the United States,” Shapiro said, chuckling as the audience applauded. “I’d like to think he’d be proud of that.”

Surrogates for Trump also campaigned in the Philadelphia area this weekend, with a handful of former administration officials and members of Congress making several stops in the collar counties as part of a statewide bus tour. During a stop at a construction company in Broomall, Delaware County, on Saturday, speakers implored the 150 supporters there to encourage their friends and family to vote, and they said the suburbs of Philadelphia will decide the future of the country.

”Pennsylvania will win or lose this thing for Donald J. Trump,” said Kash Patel, who worked in national security during the previous Trump administration. “And look, whatever they’re gonna do, we have the numbers.”

Staff writer Anna Orso contributed to this article.