Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance (R-OH) returned to Nevada on Wednesday, holding events in Las Vegas and Reno, where he encouraged early voting and blamed an influx of undocumented immigrants for many of the problems facing Americans.

In remarks lasting more than 30 minutes at Treasure Island and the Silver Legacy Resort, Vance condemned Vice President Kamala Harris’ continued support of President Joe Biden, slammed the rise in housing and grocery costs and criticized allowing transgender women to participate in women’s sports.  

He also took questions from reporters at both events. Asked by The Nevada Independent whether he and Trump would support eliminating so-called “junk fees” at resorts — as the Biden administration has supported — Vance said he and former President Donald Trump had not discussed the topic.

The events marked Vance’s first appearance in the Silver State since late July, shortly after he joined the Republican ticket. Nevada is squarely among the battleground states likely to determine the results of the presidential race, and polls show the race to be a dead heat. Trump and Democratic vice presidential nominee Gov. Tim Walz (D-MN) are also visiting the state in the coming days.

Vance’s visit came on the fifth day of in-person early voting in Nevada. Early returns show registered Republicans have a significant turnout advantage over registered Democrats, a rare phenomenon in Nevada that has prompted optimism from the GOP, whose leaders had previously disparaged early and mail voting.

Here are key takeaways from Vance’s visit.

Housing policies

The start of Vance’s speech focused on Nevada’s affordable housing crisis, as the average home cost has risen about $160,000 (a more than 50 percent increase) since 2019, and the state is estimated to be short about 80,000 homes to meet the needs of the most low-income renters.

Riffing on Trump's common phrase that the administration would "drill, baby drill" — usually a reference to expanding oil extraction and fracking — he said the Trump administration would work to build more houses, cut back on regulations hampering construction companies and free up federal land for housing development.

The last point is particularly important in Nevada because the federal government owns about 86 percent of the land in the state, limiting its development and use. Trump and Harris have expressed support for freeing up the land for housing development.

Vance said the land could also be protected and conserved, which is the center of legislation introduced by Nevada’s congressional delegation and backed by Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo.

“There's a lot of land out there that isn't being used for anything, but it could be used for American homes for American citizens,” Vance said in Las Vegas.

However, he also emphasized that housing development will not be beneficial as long as undocumented immigrants continue to enter the country, part of his frequent push of the claim that they are responsible for higher housing costs.

“It doesn't matter how many homes you build, my friends,” Vance said in Las Vegas. “If you let in millions upon millions of illegal aliens who shouldn't be here, we're not going to have enough homes for our people.”

Housing experts have said that it is not so simple. Although an increase in immigrants may contribute to a small increase in housing costs, housing affordability has been a longstanding problem, largely dating back to a lack of new construction in the wake of the Great Recession. A homebuying rush during the pandemic compounded the issue. 

Immigration emphasis

It wasn't only while discussing housing that Vance scapegoated immigrants.

He said emergency wait times and access to hospital services are increasing because undocumented immigrants get free access to health care. Emergency rooms are not allowed to turn people away based on their citizenship status, but undocumented immigrants face significant obstacles in obtaining health care and are ineligible for federal health insurance subsidies.

In his Reno rally, Vance also accused Harris of wanting to give undocumented immigrants access to Medicare. At a 2019 presidential debate, Harris raised her hand when asked if her health care plan would cover undocumented immigrants, but she has not said that she supports taxpayer funding for those benefits.

He also added the children of undocumented immigrants are taking resources away from other students.

“We've got thousands upon thousands of kids who are the children of illegal immigrants who are in our public schools in Nevada,” Vance said. “And of course, what happens when you've got teachers who've got to focus on kids who don't even speak English? That means that Nevada children are getting the short end of the stick and they're (not) getting the education they deserve.”

The U.S. Constitution prohibits public schools from discriminating against students based on their immigration status.

Vance also said he does not blame children who have been brought into the country illegally, and that instead the blame should rest with Harris.

He also told the story of meeting with drug enforcement officials and learning that dangerous drugs have the appearance of candy. He said another Trump administration would continue building a wall at the southern border and deport undocumented immigrants (Trump has vowed to launch the largest mass deportation operation in the nation’s history). 

Early voting encouragement

Vance encouraged supporters to vote early or by mail, with the hopes of the GOP having a turnout lead before Election Day.

“Let’s try to make as many votes by Election Day as possible,” Vance said. “Usually Republicans go into Election Day down thousands, sometimes tens of thousands of ballots. We have a chance in Nevada of going into Election Day with Republicans up by thousands of ballots.”

It’s part of a GOP strategy this cycle to encourage early and mail voting after previously denigrating mail ballots as fraudulent and arguing voting should only last one day. Still, Trump has given mixed messaging this year on whether his supporters should vote that way.

As of Wednesday morning, registered Republicans had a 12,000-vote turnout advantage over registered Democrats, though it is unclear whether that will result in Republicans hemorrhaging their typical Election Day voting advantage.

Before Vance spoke in Las Vegas, Nevada GOP Chair Michael McDonald asked attendees to stand if they had voted early — and nearly everyone did so. McDonald also said he would be voting early for the first time in his life "to make sure that my vote counts."

Glen Gulick of Gardnerville said he was also an early voter Tuesday, describing the process as “very smooth, very professional.”

Standing outside the Silver Legacy Resort in Reno on Wednesday, he waved a Trump/Vance sign to passing drivers who responded with honks and cheers. Behind him, a woman waiting to enter the rally chanted “Trump, Trump, Trump!”

“You might dislike Donald Trump, but you can’t dislike Vance,” Gulick said. “He’s so articulate, intelligent … that’s why we’re all here to see Vance. We support him as much as we support Donald.”