'This Week' Transcript 10-20-24: Governors Gretchen Whitmer, Josh Shapiro, Tony Evers, and Chris Sununu

A rush transcript of "This Week with George Stephanopoulos" airing on Sunday, October 20, 2024 on ABC News is below. This copy may not be in its final form, may be updated and may contain minor transcription errors. For previous show transcripts, visit the "This Week" transcript archive.

MARTHA RADDATZ: I want to start with each one of you, each state. I'm going to start with you, Governor Shapiro. In Pennsylvania, if the election were held today, who would win?

GOV. JOSH SHAPIRO (D-PA): I think Kamala Harris wins, but make no mistake, it's close. We're not afraid of that. It doesn't worry us. It causes us to get out and work, and that's what we're doing. That's why the three of us are on this blue wall bus tour going through Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania. I feel really, really confident.

GOV. GRETCHEN WHITMER (D-MI): I agree it's going to be close, but you cannot roll up your sleeves if you're wringing your hands. So the antidote to apathy is action. We are working our tails off. And I think Michigan goes with Harris-Walz. But we're not going to take any, make any assumptions. We're going to do the work all the way through.

RADDATZ: I have a feeling you're going to say the same thing. Wisconsin.

GOV. TONY EVERS (D-WI): Good guess, good guess. Yeah, absolutely. This is, this is a blue wall here, and it's going to be close. We got a good ground game. There's a lot of energy, absolutely.

RADDATZ: And Governor Shapiro, let me go back to you. You got the biggest prize, with 19 electoral votes. All the pundits and pollsters say Pennsylvania is a must win or she will not win. Do you agree with that?

SHAPIRO: Look, I think it's a must win, and we want to win here. And I think both candidates believe that Pennsylvania is critical. I just think we've got a better candidate. We got a better message. And what we're experiencing as we're out, is we're seeing a whole lot more energy. And so I'm feeling really good, not just about the way the votes seem to be lining up, which we get close to the end here, but the enthusiasm we have, and what that means for neighbors convincing other neighbors to step up and do their part to protect our freedom and democracy.

RADDATZ: You took Beaver County, which is Trump country. You took it in 2022, you're working hard to get Beaver County. We were out there just a few weeks ago. It is definitely Trump country.

SHAPIRO: The good people of Beaver County are common sense. They're thoughtful. They want to know what these candidates are going to do to improve their lives. They saw Donald Trump in charge for four years, and he didn't make the situation in Beaver County better. In fact, he brought more chaos. And the good folks out there are really discerning, they're careful, and I believe that Kamala Harris is going to perform really well there.

RADDATZ: And Governor Whitmer, look at the polls. I mean just a couple of elections ago, this, this blue wall was almost guaranteed for Democrats. I know you've seen enthusiasm. I know you're working hard, but the polls really aren’t showing that. Who did the Democrats lose over these years?

WHITMER: I think if you even go back eight years, all three of our states went for Donald Trump, and then all three of us were elected and reelected. And this is, I think, you don't win a state like Michigan by 11 points without a lot of people coming over, independents and Republicans. And that's part of our missive, as we've been to Wisconsin and Michigan and now here in Pennsylvania, there's a seat at the table for everyone. We understand that there are Republicans out there who are lamenting that Donald Trump is their nominee. They're not sure about our agenda. We're making a seat at the table for them. We are not writing anyone off.

RADDATZ: I want to go back to the polls, it is razor thin and some of the averages they see Trump actually making gains. I know you're saying you have faith in these voters and they understand what, what they saw in Donald Trump years ago, but the polls just aren't showing it.

WHITMER: Listen, the only people that are not surprised about these polls are us three. We all expect this. We are not upset about it, we’re not scared. We're determined to make sure we do everything in our power to win this thing. And while this is going to be close, I'd much rather be playing our hand than theirs. We got a better candidate. We've got receipts on the issues that matter to the American people, on the economy, individual rights, affordable housing, etc. And we got a better ground game. And we're going to, we're going to do the work.

RADDATZ: Governor Evers, it is hard to believe that people are still undecided at this point. They know who Donald Trump is. They know what he has done. They saw the Biden administration, and many of them are not happy with it and tie Kamala Harris in there. So is this a -- an election where it's not so much in this ground game going after the undecided, but the unenthused?

EVERS: I do believe it's undecided. I mean, I think there's plenty of enthusiasm on both sides of Wisconsin. You know, it's close. I won by 1% and I tripled it the next time, three, 3%, and so we anticipated this right from the get go. But I talk to people just about every day that are, are torn about what to, what to do, how they're going to vote. And so I think there are people that can be convinced

RADDATZ: What are they waiting to hear? I mean, they have watched Donald Trump. They have watched Kamala Harris over these past few months. How can they be undecided?

EVERS: There are people that, frankly, don't follow this on a daily basis. There's people that don't follow the polls. There's people that just don't, you know, they go to work, they got kids at home, they do the, do the job with the kids, they get up the next day. These polls look at a small number. I know they're, I know it's a science, but at the end of the day, I run into people all the time that just haven’t given it a thought, and so we're going to help ‘em.

RADDATZ: When you think about Donald Trump, and his appeal, to all of your voters in your states, to half of the voters in your states – what do you think the appeal is of Donald Trump to people? What do you think they like about him in the end?

SHAPIRO: I think there's a lot of folks who are frustrated that they don't see government solving problems in their communities. I think what people are craving are leaders who know how to get stuff done for them. It's about ordinary Americans trying to get through their day and wanting to know that folks in government are looking out for them. Donald Trump talks a good game about that. Now he has a history of failing to deliver over and over and over again, and I think part of our responsibility here is to make sure we're letting folks know that despite the noise, despite the bluster, despite the words that come out of his mouth, they're not only empty promises now, as Gretchen says, we got the receipts to prove that when he had the keys to the White House before, he failed the American people time and time again.

RADDATZ: But to that point, again. Back to those polls, the economy, immigration, by far, those people who are polled, trust Donald Trump. So, so what you're saying about, ‘look, he didn't do the job back then,’ they don't think that, and they think he can do it now better than Kamala Harris. His message is getting through on, on immigration and on the economy. Yours is not. Governor Whitmer?

WHITMER: He's a charlatan. He’s convinced people that he is strong when he's actually very weak. He told Michiganders he wouldn't let a single auto plant close under his watch. Six closed. We lost 280,000 jobs in Michigan. He just came into Detroit and denigrated the city of Detroit. Shows his ignorance. He doesn't appreciate what the renaissance actually is in the city of Detroit. He denigrated auto workers, saying children could do their jobs. He likes to pretend he's tough, but in the reality, he's weak.

RADDATZ: Again, people are still supporting Donald Trump, despite what you’re saying. His message is getting through.

EVERS: Donald Trump has done nothing for the state of Wisconsin. And you know, we have, we have the best economy, we've ever had, the largest budget, budget work that we've ever had, and we're in a good shape, and people are making more money than they ever made. So we're, we're in a good place, and it had nothing to do with Donald Trump.

RADDATZ: Let's go back to the economy. You say we’re in good shape. People I talked to in this state, in your state, in your state, don't seem to be feeling that. Yes, things have improved. You look at inflation, grocery prices are the thing they always talk about. So Donald Trump's message is getting through. Kamala Harris' message, since she is tied in with the Biden administration, even if things are improving, they're still blaming her for that.

SHAPIRO: Look, Martha, respectfully, I don't hear that when I'm out and about. I do understand that Pennsylvanians and others across this country continue to struggle with the cost of things. By the way, it's one of the reasons why here in Pennsylvania, on a bipartisan basis, we've cut taxes four different times for small businesses, for families, for seniors, to put more money back in people's pockets, the very kinds of policies that Kamala Harris is running on. I want a commander-in-chief like Kamala Harris who wants to talk us up, who wants to lift us up, not knock us down every single time they get the microphone the way Donald Trump does.

RADDATZ: Are you concerned about turnout in the Black and Latino communities – you've had a, kind of a massive drop in the turnout in Black voters in Wisconsin.

EVERS: Yeah, I think we're in a better place this time. We have a much different ground game. I feel confident that it's going to be much larger than the last time. And it's important to make sure that all people in Wisconsin feel that this election means something to them, and so we've upped the ground game in all our areas around the state, whether it's rural, whether it's in the Milwaukee area. It's going to be better.

RADDATZ: And Governor Whitmer, let’s talk about the Arab-American vote in Michigan, the uncommitted delegates. Others are flat out saying, we’re not endorsing Kamala Harris, we won’t vote for her, we will not vote for her because of what's going on in Gaza. How do you convince them?

WHITMER: Well, I think it's by continuing to keep the dialogue open, there are a lot of people in the community that are supporting Kamala Harris. There are some who are supporting Donald Trump, and some who are saying, I'm not going to endorse, but we'll let the people decide what they want to do. You know, at the end of the day, I think the biggest question is, who's got a plan that is going to make your life better? You know, whether it is on that issue or any other. Donald Trump –

RADDATZ: Well, that issue, that is a very, very big issue –

WHITMER: Yeah, it's a huge issue –

RADDATZ: For that community, and they–

WHITMER: No question–

MARTHA: – have not seen it.

WHITMER: And Martha, you know, our Jewish community is hurting as well, our Arab community and our Muslim community and our Palestinian community, these are not monolithic. They're all feeling a level of pain that is hard for most people to recognize and to understand. But, at the end of the day, do you want a leader who's going to throw gas on the fire to keep you angry so that you tune out? Or do you want one who's going to try to get in there and solve problems, who cares about you and your family, who wants to bring peace to the region and get the hostages returned and rebuild the area and support families here in the United States, that's what Kamala Harris offers.

RADDATZ: I want to talk about the election -- Election Day. When do you, you think we’ll have a result, Governor Evers?

EVERS: Midnight.

RADDATZ: Midnight?

EVERS: Yeah.

RADDATZ: Governor Shapiro?

SHAPIRO: I think Republican --

RADDATZ: Because you know what happened last time --

(CROSSTALK)

SHAPIRO: Republican and Democratic clerks of elections acted so honorably last time in ‘20 and by the way, again in ‘21, ‘22, ‘23, and they will again in ‘24 in counting the votes.

We want to make sure we have an accurate count, and like we did in 2020, have a free and fair, safe and secure election. We did make one concrete change since the last time we had a presidential race, and that is, once the counties begin counting -- it's 7 a.m. on Election Day -- they can't stop, meaning they have to keep going.

The last time, some of the counties stopped, went home, slept, had some, you know, water and food, and came back. This time, they've made plans to go all the way through, so I expect it'll be sooner than what we had last time.

RADDATZ: Governor Whitmer, you’ve already heard what Donald Trump said this week.

TRUMP PBD PODCAST (OCT. 17): If the election is not rigged, we're going to win. If it is rigged, I guess that's a different story

RADDATZ: If Kamala Harris wins, what's your big worry?

WHITMER: He's already laying the groundwork to undermine the outcome of this election. His running mate has said he believes Donald Trump won the last election. They are election deniers. They are the people that inspired the attempted insurrection at our nation's capital and now call it a ‘day of love.’ I mean, they are trying to pull the wool over the American public's eyes once again, and we're anticipating that they'll continue to try to do that when they lose this election, assuming they lose this election. But I'm going to make sure every vote gets counted. I want to protect our, our voices in Michigan, and I'm going to -- we've made it easier for more people to participate.

EVERS: The people that do the work are, are local folks, they’re our friends and neighbors, and they've done a great job. I see nothing for people to be concerned about. We had all sorts of challenges last time. We'll follow the law, we'll get through it, and life will go on.

SHAPIRO: Look, I've got great confidence in the good people in Pennsylvania to count the votes accurately and to respect the will of the people. I do not have confidence that Donald Trump won't whine about it, won't put out dangerous rhetoric and mis- and disinformation. That's the threat, and I will tell the good people of this Commonwealth and this country, we’re prepared for anything Donald Trump throws at us, and we're going to make sure the will of the people is protected.