Donald Trump is holding his first public campaign rally one week after he survived an attempted assassination, returning to the battleground state of Michigan alongside his new running mate.

The joint rally with Ohio Senator JD Vance is the pair’s first since they became their party’s nominees at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.

Trump kicked off the gathering of Republicans by naming Vance his vice presidential pick, and concluded it with a speech urging unity following a July 13 shooting in Pennsylvania that left Trump with a bloodied ear, killed one man in the crowd and left two others injured.

Hours before he took the stage, Trump’s supporters crowded the streets of downtown Grand Rapids in anticipation of the former president’s remarks.

Supporters began lining up Friday morning, and by Saturday afternoon, the stretched close to a mile from the Van Andel Arena.

Many were seen wearing shirts featuring the image of Trump, on stage, after he was shot, pumping his fist in the air after surviving the shooting.

Mike Gaydos, who travelled from Indiana with his three sons to attend the rally, said he didn’t consider himself a “huge” Trump supporter in the past but wanted to show support for the former president following his attempted assassination.

“We can’t allow something like that to collar us,” he said.

“Bravery is what I thought he showed that day and I want to show my sons about bravery as well.”

Numerous streets, closed as an additional security precaution, were dotted with vendors selling food and apparel.

Among them was a vendor from North Carolina who said he had spent the night making shirts featuring “Trump Vance ’24”.

Downtown Grand Rapids also saw a significant police presence, with officers stationed on nearly every block, while others patrolled on horseback and bicycles.

“This is the tightest I’ve ever seen the security,” said Renee White, who said that she’s been to 33 of Trump’s rallies.

“We usually can bring in some small bags but today I had to just leave stuff out there.”

Michigan is one of the handful of crucial swing states expected to determine the outcome of November’s presidential election.

Trump narrowly won the state by just over 10,000 votes in 2016, but Democrat Joe Biden flipped it back in 2020, winning by a margin of 154,000 votes on his way to the presidency.

With Vance by his side, Trump will deliver remarks in Grand Rapids, a historically Republican stronghold that has trended increasingly blue in recent elections.