Vice presidential candidates Sen. JD Vance and Gov. Tim Walz both campaigned in Arizona on Wednesday as early voting began in a state that could decide the presidential election and control of the Senate.

Walz spoke to veterans and their families at an event at a Veterans of Foreign Wars post in Chandler with Senate candidate Rep. Ruben Gallego and Jim McCain, son of former Republican Sen. John McCain.

Jim McCain, who was once a Republican but announced in September that he was supporting the Democratic candidacy of Vice President Kamala Harris and Walz, told the crowd that the last time he was in the post was when they named him after his father in 2019 .

“It is an honor to stand here today with Governor Walz, a man who knows service and sacrifice, a man who does not demonize people who disagree with him but instead focuses on helping the people of this “To bring the country together,” McCain said.

Walz touched on veterans issues and the importance of Republicans like McCain voting for Harris.

“I'll tell you what it's about: the Constitution over a single person. This is about the rule of law and being able to do whatever you want. And it's about making sure you put your fellow citizens above personal gain,” Walz said, referring to Harris' rival, former President Donald Trump. The Minnesota governor later spoke at a rally in Tucson.

With less than a month until Election Day, the race between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris to win the battleground state remains tight. According to FiveThirtyEight's latest forecast, Trump leads Harris in the state by just over a percentage point.

The Trump campaign said Vance would encourage Arizonans to vote early in this year's election, a sharp departure from the rhetoric Trump used in 2020 when he questioned mail-in ballots and early voting.

And he did so at an afternoon rally in Tucson.

“Whether you vote on Election Day, vote by mail or vote early, get out there and make your voice heard. And importantly, I encourage you to vote early if you are able,” he said.

Vance later made a pitch to Latino voters at a town hall in Mesa hosted by the Conservative Political Action Conference.

Wednesday's swing marked Vance's third visit to the state since becoming Trump's vice presidential running mate in July, and Walz's trip was his second since being picked by Harris as her running mate in August.

Harris and Trump will also visit Arizona later this week – Harris will campaign there on Thursday and Trump on Sunday.

In 2020, Trump narrowly lost the state to President Joe Biden by just over 10,000 votes. As ABC News previously reported, Trump tried to pressure then-Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey to overturn the presidential race results.

Trump dispatched former Vice President Mike Pence to pressure Ducey to uncover fraudulent votes in the state, and although Pence called Ducey several times after the election, he did not follow those instructions.

Speaking on the “Ruthless” podcast last Thursday, Vance shared that he thinks the campaign's chances are good in Sunbelt states like Arizona, Georgia and North Carolina, but even more so in Rust Belt states, including Michigan work must be done. Wisconsin and Pennsylvania.

The first day of early voting in Arizona coincided with Wednesday night's Senate debate between Gallego and Republican Kari Lake.

According to FiveThirtyEight, Gallego is currently ahead of Lake by almost 8 percentage points.

In his remarks to veterans and their families in Chandler, Gallego suggested a similar theme to Walz's regarding the presidential election.

“This is not a partisan issue. This is not a Democratic thing, this is not a Republican thing. “This is an American thing,” the congressman said. “We must protect our true American heritage, which is the safe passage of democracy from one hand to the other.” The Constitution that we must protect, that we all swore to protect and that we continue to protect. That's what's at stake here.

Lake, who lost Arizona's gubernatorial election in 2022, angered many moderate Republicans by feuding with Ducey and angering the late Sen. McCain's supporters. Lake continues to deny the validity of the 2020 and 2022 elections, but has changed her approach to her campaign and sought to woo the moderate Republicans she lost in 2022.

Ducey endorsed Lake in August, saying there was too much at stake in this election cycle.

“I will vote for the Republicans.” “I voted in November – and both Donald Trump and Kari Lake have my support,” Ducey wrote on House of Representatives.” and the US Senate can ensure this.”