GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Michigan is playing a critical role in the 2024 election.
Former President Donald Trump is making another trip to Michigan, and so is his pick for vice president.
On Monday, Trump will be in Detroit to address the National Guard Association of the United States at its annual conference.
The organization traditionally invites candidates from both parties to speak in election years.
There has yet to be confirmation of whether Vice President Harris will attend.
Trump's upcoming trip will mark his 7th to the mitten state.
In July, Trump was in Grand Rapids a week after there was an attempt on his life.
"The Trump rally was a very big logistical lift for the police department, for the city in general," Grand Rapids Police Chief Eric Winstrom said.
When Trump held his rally in GR, it was one week after Thomas Matthew Crooks attempted to assassinate the now Republican presidential nominee.
"We knew that all eyes would be on us (and) how we handled the first rally after Butler, Pennsylvania," Winstrom said.
Trump's campaign publicly announced the stop four days ahead of the rally. Winstrom explains they often get short notice about a campaign stop.
"We don't get a lot of advance warnings, so oftentimes we'll get less than a week heads up. A lot of things change in campaigning, and so we'll have just a few days to prep," Winstrom added.
The chief explains that he called in as many officers as he could. He added that he did not pull from shifts scheduled to patrol the streets at night or during the day.
"We have a strong law enforcement community here, and everybody stepped up and helped out, and we were able to properly staff the event," Winstrom said.
Through a Freedom of Information Request, FOX 17 learned what it cost to secure a political event like this in Grand Rapids.
The bill was nearly $69,000 to secure the political event in Grand Rapids with city police and fire services.
"We had about 30,000 total visitors. We had a line that stretched over a mile and a half," Winstrom said. "What we knew was that it's our job to keep everybody in the city safe."
A city spokesperson explained they were still calculating the total cost of all city staff who worked that day.
They add the city is planning on invoicing the Trump campaign for all related expenses.
"Any invoices that were submitted to Trump's campaign in the past have been paid," a Grand Rapids spokesperson said.
Trump has proposed that he and now Democratic presidential nominee Harris have a debate in Grand Rapids in September.
Harris hasn't agreed to it. Debate or not, Winstrom is ready.
"We know we're going to have visits in the near future from likely the former president again, likely the sitting Vice President, so we'll be ready for him," Winstrom said.
Now, to clarify, these numbers are only the City of Grand Rapids resources. The Secret Service also utilizes county and state-level resources for events like this.
Trump's running mate, Senator JD Vance, will be in Big Rapids on Tuesday. He is expected to deliver remarks on the economy, inflation, and manufacturing at a horse farm.
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