Democratic vice presidential candidate Kamala Harris will visit the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley’s Edinburg campus Friday afternoon for a private outdoor event, the university announced in an email sent to staff and students Thursday morning.
Her UTRGV visit is part of her campaign stop in the Valley on Friday, which includes an event to rally the region’s voters in McAllen. The details of the McAllen event, such as the time and location, have not yet been confirmed.
Harris, U.S. senator for California, will be in the Valley just five days before voters will decide the race between President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential candidate and former Vice President Joe Biden.
The campaign has rented five parking lots on the east side of campus, near the university’s science and engineering buildings, for the event.
The university also expressed that “this is not a UTRGV-sponsored event and UTRGV will not and cannot endorse any political candidate.”
This is not the first time the Valley has drawn presidential candidates to the region.
In 2008, then-Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama visited the University of Texas at Brownsville for a forum with religious leaders and later attended the Sombrero Festival in Brownsville. At the time, Obama was in a hotly contested race for the Democratic nomination with Hillary Clinton, who also visited the Valley in lead-up to the March primary that year.
Obama also visited the University of Texas-Pan American campus in Edinburg during February 2008. Clinton visited there in the same month, and additionally spoke at the McAllen Convention Center earlier in February.
Vice President Mike Pence and President Trump have also visited the Valley since taking office.
