Hundreds of supporters filled a private hangar at Pittsburgh International Airport on Sunday morning, eagerly awaiting the arrival of Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris, her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, and their spouses.

After their arrival, Harris and Walz held a brief campaign rally at the airport. They will then take a bus tour of the region to see sights in Allegheny County and neighboring Beaver County, according to the White House.

One of the invited supporters at the airport, 62-year-old Jennifer Robbins of Ross, said she was thrilled by the excitement at the Wright Bros. Aero hangar in Moon.

“It feels like we’re at a concert,” Robbins said as music blared from the speakers and fans streamed in.

She is a local Democratic politician and said she supports the Harris-Walz slate because of its commitment to abortion access following the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

Derek Haeussler, 20, of Pittsburgh’s South Side Slopes, said he woke up at 6 a.m., left shortly thereafter and then waited outside the hangar for more than an hour to get a front-row seat.

“I can’t describe the energy,” he said. “Harris and Walz know how important Western Pennsylvania is.”

Democratic elected officials were also present at the hangar to greet Harris, Walz and their spouses. Also in attendance were Pat Catena, Democrat of Carnegie, president of the Allegheny County Council, and Joe McAndrew, Democrat of Penn Hills, state Rep.

The candidates and their spouses are expected to arrive late Sunday morning or early afternoon. After today’s campaign stops in Western Pennsylvania, they will fly to Chicago for the Democratic National Convention, which begins Monday.

Allegheny County has been a solid base for Democrats over the decades, while Beaver County slipped out of their grasp in the last presidential election. Yet cities along the Ohio and Beaver Rivers, including Rochester, where Harris and Walz were scheduled to stop, remained politically Democratic enclaves in an increasingly hostile area for Democrats.

For Democratic candidates in Pennsylvania, a crucial swing state with 19 electoral votes up for grabs, it remains crucial to retain their votes in these industrial areas, where the white working class predominantly lives.

The bus tour is designed to meet voters in community settings such as stores. The campaign has not released a schedule of planned stops.