Asheville mayor, WNC representatives urge voters to back Harris-Walz and 'flip' NC

ASHEVILLE - The slate of speakers introducing Democratic vice-presidential nominee and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz to a fervent Asheville crowd Sept. 17 seemed, like Walz himself, to be reaching out beyond the blue island of Buncombe County, extending a hand to those undecided or across the aisle.

They, too, were keenly aware of North Carolina's status as a battleground state this election, with polls tightening — now an election that one political scientist called a "coin toss" — and urged voters to help "flip" North Carolina blue.

“We’re going to make calls, we’re going to knock on doors, we’re going to register people to vote, we’re going to make a plan to get people to the polls," said Asheville Mayor Esther Manheimer, the first of several speakers who took to the stage ahead of Walz at the Sept. 17 rally.

"We’re going to take this action because this year North Carolina is in play, and you can make it happen.”

Manheimer was there to greet Walz when he touched down at the Asheville Airport — with a handshake and brief conversation — and as she told a laughing crowd later that evening, he was "super nice."

"We know that with this election so many things that impact our families and communities are on the ballot. Reproductive freedom is on the ballot. Economic opportunity is on the ballot. And our very democracy is on the ballot," she said. "With so much at stake, I am fired up to welcome Gov. Tim Walz to Asheville. He and Vice President Harris are the right choice for North Carolina, and the right choice for our country."

Of all the states that went for former President Donald Trump in 2020, North Carolina was his narrowest victory — a margin of 1.34%, about 75,000 votes. Area pundits said, ahead of the rally, that Walz was likely to not only address blue Asheville and Buncombe County, but voters in the red counties that surround the population center of WNC.

“The path to the White House runs right here through North Carolina," said another speaker, Meredith Anderson, organizer with N.C. Coordinated Campaign. "We just have to fight for it.”

'Not a party that I recognize anymore'

There's a story Walz has told in recent stump speeches during his brief, but energetic, campaign as Vice President Kamala Harris's running mate.

In the story, he says that while exiting a bus at a rally, he and Harris observe two groups of people: "A whole bunch of our supporters, and folks that aren't our supporters." He usually makes a joke here about red hats making it easy to differentiate, but the punchline is: Harris turns to him and says they work just as hard for the people and families on one side of the street as the other.

Among the evening's speakers was former state Supreme Court Justice Bob Orr, a longtime Republican, who said the party, one he was part of for nearly five decades, "is not a party that I recognize any more."

He was there to ask for people to support the Harris-Walz ticket, and said the two have "reached across the aisle and are working to gain the support of Republicans, moderates and independents who cannot support Donald Trump and his MAGA-ally Mark Robinson and their extreme agenda."

"Today it is no longer the party of those who care about protecting our freedoms or about lowering costs for working and middle class North Carolinians or about fighting for our democracy," Orr said of the Republican party. "It is the party of Donald Trump and JD Vance and Mark Robinson and their extreme project 2025 agenda designed to rip away our fundamental freedoms, strangle our economy and undermine the very foundations of our democracy.”

He pointed to growing "Republicans for Harris" coalitions, and the backing of prominent Republicans like former Vice President Dick Cheney, former Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger and numerous former Trump administrative officials.

As the speech wound down, the audience began chanting, "thank you," to which Orr responded, "thank you ... and you can count me in."

Buncombe County voters have picked Democrats in presidential elections since 2008, often against the red tide of the surrounding region. North Carolina has gone for Democrats in the presidential race only twice in the past 50 years, most recently for Barack Obama in 2008.

N.C. state Rep. Lindsey Prather said, in her opening lines, "like all of you, I am ready to flip North Carolina."

2nd Trump term would be 'devastating' for WNC, Vice Mayor says

There was a strong showing from Asheville City Council among the openers, with Vice Mayor Sandra also delivering remarks, bringing an "it's on all of us," message to voters.

“A second Trump term will be devastating for Western North Carolina. Just devastating. But you know what? We’re not going back," she said.

She told a story of a Republican neighbor who voiced concerns to her about the possibility of Trump's reelection.

“Their political affiliation or religious beliefs or race or ideology does not matter. When you reach out across the aisles it does not matter," Kilgore said.

“I have faith in the people. I trust that they are capable from distinguishing right from wrong, and they will vote according to their conscience.”

As Walz put it later in his speech, "this stuff is personal for all of us."

"This is not theoretical, you’re not rooting for your team. You’re not like, oh, I’m on the ‘red hat team’ no matter how bad they are. Ditch them. Ditch them if they start doing bad," he said.

N.C. state Rep. Caleb Rudow, also running for U.S. House of Representatives against incumbent Republican Chuck Edwards, released a statement on Walz's visit that pointed to this messaging: "When he invited disenfranchised Republic voters to join us, he did something important: he reminded us that no one should feel stuck on a team that isn't delivering for them. If your team's not working for you, it's okay to change sides — and I welcome anyone ready to make that leap."

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Sarah Honosky is the city government reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA TODAY Network. News Tips? Email shonosky@citizentimes.com or message on X, formerly Twitter, at @slhonosky. Please support local, daily journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Gov. Walz in Asheville: Mayor, local reps say, 'we're not going back'