VP Kamala Harris expected in NH later this week

Apr. 18—Vice President Kamala Harris plans to visit New Hampshire later this week, her first trip to the Granite State since she and President Joe Biden were sworn into office in January, a source confirmed to the New Hampshire Union Leader on Sunday.

The source confirmed Harris is looking to travel to the Granite State on Friday, April 23, with possible stops in the North Country including Laconia and Plymouth.

The trip, including exact locations and events, had yet to be finalized or announced by the Office of the Vice President as of Sunday afternoon.

The visit would mark Harris' first trip to New Hampshire since the fall of 2019, when she addressed members of the New Hampshire Democratic Party as a presidential candidate during the state convention at the SNHU Arena in Manchester.

Harris has been criticized by Republicans for her role in the Biden administration's efforts to address the migrant crisis at the southern border of the U.S.

"Our country is facing a crisis at our southern border, not our northern one," said NH GOP Chairman Stephen Stepanek. "There are either serious communication issues within the Biden Administration, or Vice President Kamala Harris is simply unable to follow the directives of President Biden to fulfill her duties as the Border Czar. Granite Staters will clearly see this as yet another evasion from the worsening border crisis built by President Joe Biden."

Harris made several trips to New Hampshire while on the campaign trail, including an outdoor town hall at Mack's Apples in Londonderry that drew hundreds. An estimated 1,500 people attended a rally in Portsmouth in February 2019.

In early November 2019 the Harris campaign closed offices in New Hampshire, as the focus of the campaign at the time shifted to Iowa. By early December Harris would end her presidential bid, saying her campaign lacked the financial resources to continue.

In August 2020, Biden announced Harris as his running mate, the first Black woman and South Asian American in that role.

This week's visit will mark the second trip to New Hampshire by a member of the Biden-Harris administration in a little more than a month.

First lady Jill Biden traveled to Concord to visit the Christa McAuliffe School on March 17 as part of the administration's "Help is Here" tour.

The first lady's trip underscored "how the (American) Rescue Plan provides $130 billion to help schools reopen," White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said in a briefing at the time.