Vice President JD Vance brought hard news and real money to western North Carolina on Monday, announcing $858 million in new federal disaster relief for the state's Hurricane Helene recovery during a midterm rally in Hendersonville.
The funding, from the Department of Transportation, will help rebuild eight major transportation corridors damaged by the storm — including Interstate 40 through the Pigeon River Gorge, where Helene tore the highway apart. Vance noted the new money comes on top of an earlier $7.5 billion FEMA commitment to the region's recovery, and he reflected on his own visit to western North Carolina in the aftermath of the storm and the rebuilding challenges that remain more than a year later.
The administration says the funding will help rebuild eight major transportation corridors, including I-40 through the Pigeon River Gorge.
The rally, hosted by the Trump 47 Committee at Hyder Warehouse, was a campaign stop with a governing announcement inside it. Vance campaigned for Michael Whatley, the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate against former Democratic Governor Roy Cooper, and for state Rep. Jennifer Balkcom in North Carolina's 11th Congressional District, where she faces Democrat Jamie Ager. The 11th District seat opened up when Rep. Chuck Edwards withdrew from the race and was censured by the House on September 1; the contest has since tightened into one of the most watched House races in the country, and the Senate race is just as competitive.
Beyond the relief money, Vance pressed the administration's broader case — border enforcement, commercial driver's licence requirements, prescription drug costs, energy production and taxes — arguing the Trump White House is prioritising American workers and communities hit by natural disasters. The speech was briefly interrupted by a protester standing behind the stage who shouted for the release of the Epstein files before the event continued.
Hendersonville is the western bookend of a coordinated North Carolina blitz. President Trump rallies in Greenville, in the east of the state, on Tuesday, then moves on to Clemson, South Carolina on Wednesday. Early voting is already underway across North Carolina and runs through Saturday, October 31, with the midterms on November 3 and control of Congress on the line.
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