A few thousand people rallied in Reno on Tuesday in support of former president Donald Trump’s vice presidential pick, Senator JD Vance.
Vance spoke for nearly half an hour, barely mentioning issues unique to Nevada. Instead, he railed against Vice President Kamala Harris, saying she was truly running the country under Joe Biden’s administration. He also briefly shared the stage with Republican Senate candidate Sam Brown.
Vance has been very open about his difficult childhood. In his memoir Hillbilly Elegy, he wrote about his family history of poverty, substance use and violence.
Vance shared a message about what loyalty means. For him, it’s taking a bullet for the country, referring to Trump surviving an assassination attempt, serving in the Marine Corps, and closing the border.
"If you are in this country illegally, start packing your bags right now because Donald Trump is coming back."
Attendees are fired up about voting for Trump in November and were very excited to see Vance. They say his young age, 39, and his difficult childhood resonated with them.
Dozens of people lined up hours before the doors opened including Norma Perez, who traveled from Sacramento. She was excited when Trump chose Vance.
"He's not a straight politician," she said. "He grew up like most of us, with a lot of difficulties, a lot of struggles, but he went ahead and look at what he is right now. I don't like when you have these people that have been parents have been in politics, grandparents have been in politics, and they don't know how to earn a living."
Lucia Starbuck/KUNR