HOUSTON — With just days remaining in the election, former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris will both be in Texas on Friday holding dueling events highlighting key issues and connecting with high-profile celebrities.
Appearances in the Lone Star State this late into the presidential campaign have been rare in recent election cycles.
The Trump campaign announced the former president will deliver remarks at an airport hangar in Austin. Trump is set to discuss border security.
A spokesperson for Sen. Ted Cruz told KHOU 11 the senator will join Trump at the event. Cruz is seeking a third term in the U.S. Senate and is locked in a close race with U.S. Rep. Colin Allred, according to recent polling.
Trump will also record a podcast with Joe Rogan, host of "The Joe Rogan Experience," which is the top podcast according to charts from Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
Harris is set to host a rally in Houston on the same day. The event is set to include celebrity appearances, including pop star and Houston native Beyoncé and Texas county legend Willie Nelson. The Allred campaign confirmed to KHOU 11 that the congressman and Democratic U.S. Senate candidate will also join the event.
"The candidates are treating Texas like a swing state and we're frankly not used to that," KHOU 11 political analyst Brandon Rottinghaus said. "The fact that we're seeing them come here means that they think that this is a state in play, and that is because you're seeing a tremendous change in terms of the demographics that's happening."
Rottinghaus said the final days of campaigns are valuable for candidates to share what they believe are the strongest messages to voters.
"Both campaigns want to put their best closing argument out there, they want to make a case that the issues they care about, the ones that their voters are most attuned to, are the whole reason for this race," Rottinghaus said.
The latest University of Houston survey of likely voters found Trump ahead with 51 percent of support and Harris with 46 percent support.
Early voting is already underway in Texas but the candidates hope this visit can boost votes in their favor. KHOU 11 spoke with some voters at an early voting site in the Spring Branch area Thursday.
"I just want to make sure that my vote counts, I want to get it out there," Ashley Jensen said.
Jensen and others said their concerns over certain issues motivated them to vote early.
"I'm concerned about a lot of things in the country right now, definitely crime and the border and abortion," Jensen said.
"With everything going on in the world and in our country, especially, it just means a lot to us," Andrea Turlan said. "So early voting is definitely something that we needed to do."
Voters said the same-day visits by Trump and Harris are exciting and highlight the importance of the Lone Star State.
"I think it does go to show a little bit as well, that we are kind of, becoming closer to, a ... swing state," Scott Schuelke said.