SAN FRANCISCO (BCN) — Presidential debate watch party hosts in the Bay Area are gearing up for a busy evening as Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump prepare to meet for their final debate on Wednesday night.
Dozens of events around the region are scheduled to kick off as people gather to watch the debate, scheduled to start at 6 p.m.
The Trump campaign headquarters at 1133 Sonora Court in Sunnyvale will open its doors at 5 p.m. tonight in anticipation of the event.
“The Santa Clara County Trump Campaign invites all deplorables to join them for a no-host Trump National Debate Party,” says the invitation on BayAreaGOP.com, which lists several other Trump-leaning debate party events.
“Come dressed in your Trump gear or wear red!”
“Basket of deplorables” is a term Clinton used to describe “half” of Trump’s supporters, whom she identified as being racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic and Islamaphobic. She apologized for the remark the following day.
Many Trump supporters, however, have taken the term and run with it, creating Internet memes, T-shirts and bumper stickers mocking Clinton and proclaiming proud membership in the deplorables.
“We’re having lots of fun with it,” said California Trump campaign spokesman Jon Cordova.
Cordova expects an enthusiastic turnout for parties around the state, where the campaign has helped organize 55 events, with more expected to pop up spontaneously.
“These are like pep rallies. People are bringing signs, putting up decorations, there’s balloons and it’s a lot of fun,” Cordova said.
On the other side, Clinton supporters will gather at dozens of Bay Area events, including at Bobby G’s Pizzeria in Berkeley, Sweetwater Music Hall in Mill Valley, and Everett and Jones BBQ in Oakland, among other locations.
The local chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations is helping organize watch parties in San Francisco, Fremont and Santa Clara, said executive director Zahra Billoo.
“What we’ve heard from many Muslim voters is that this is an election that we know matters,” Billoo said. “We encourage everyone to vote regardless who they’re voting for, and also to pay attention to the down-ballot elections.”
STREAMING LIVE: KRON4 News is streaming the last Presidential debate between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. The debate is also streaming online at http://kron4.com/2016/03/16/live-stream-kron4-news-second-screen/
Watch KRON4 News at 6pm streaming at http://kron4.com/watch-kron-4-newscasts/
Here is information on how to register to vote: http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/voter-registration/