Tim Walz to reveal Kamala Harris’s plan to win rural voters and cut Trump’s edge

With just weeks before Election Day on November 5, the Harris-Walz campaign is ramping up efforts to woo American voters. The campaign hopes that a new proposals will resonate with rural voters and help make inroads in communities that have historically leaned Republican.
Democratic vice presidential nominee Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, 60, will unveil a plan on Tuesday aimed at improving the lives of rural voters, as Vice President and Democratic nominee Kamala Harris, 59, seeks to reduce former President Donald Trump’s support in rural America.
The Harris-Walz plan focuses on enhancing rural health care, economic growth, and agricultural support, with a specific goal of recruiting 10,000 new health care workers in rural and tribal areas through scholarships, loan forgiveness, and grants, according to The Times magazine.
This announcement comes as the Democrats make a last-ditch effort to appeal to rural voters, a group that Trump dominated in the 2020 election. In a race where every vote could be crucial, both parties — Republican and Democrat — are trying to reach beyond their traditional voter bases.
Trump won rural voters by nearly two-to-one in the last election, according to AP VoteCast, as reported by The Times magazine.
Walz, a former football coach from a small town in Minnesota, will present the plan during a campaign stop in rural Lawrence County, Pennsylvania, a key battleground state. He will also be featured in a new radio ad airing in rural areas of Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.
In the ad, Walz emphasises his small-town roots and criticises Trump and his running mate, Ohio Senator JD Vance.
“In a small town, you don’t focus on the politics; you focus on taking care of your neighbours and minding your own damn business,” Walz says in the ad. “Now Donald Trump and JD Vance, they don’t think like us. They’re in it for themselves.”
The Harris-Walz plan also includes a proposal to extend telemedicine coverage under Medicare permanently, a benefit introduced during the pandemic that is set to expire at the end of 2024.
Additionally, the plan advocates for grants to support volunteer EMS programmes, aiming to reduce the number of Americans living more than 25 minutes away from ambulance services.
Another key component of the plan is restoring the Affordable Connectivity Programme, a Biden-era initiative that provided up to $30 off home internet bills before expiring in June.
The plan also calls for legislation requiring equipment manufacturers to grant farmers the right to repair their machinery, addressing a long-standing issue in the agricultural sector.