Paul Ryan urges Nevada voters to vote early

Las Vegas, Nevada (CNN) -- Paul Ryan focused on Nevada's high unemployment and foreclosure rates when he visited the battleground state the same day as President Barack Obama on Thursday.

Roughly an hour after the Democratic incumbent held a rally in Las Vegas, Ryan spoke to fewer than a thousand people in Reno, where his running mate and Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney campaigned just a week ago.

Ryan segued from Superstorm Sandy's devastation in the Northeast to the economic hardships Nevada residents have faced under the Obama administration.

"When you also think about the economic damage, you don't have to look very far beyond the Reno city limits. You don't have to look very far beyond the foreclosure rate here in Nevada. You don't have to look at all the underwater mortgages. You don't have to look at the 23 million Americans who are struggling to find a job today," Ryan said. "The economy's limping along, it's growing at less than half the rate President Obama said it would if he could just pass this stimulus plan. This is not what a real recovery looks like."

In Reno, which is part of Washoe County that Obama carried in 2008 with 55% of the vote, Ryan urged supporters to take advantage of early voting, which concludes on Friday.

"Nevadans, you understand the place you have, you understand the role you play, the opportunity and responsibility. Let's take it seriously," he said. "Let's make sure that we get those people who may have voted for hope and change because they like the rhetoric but understand it's not working. In a state where you have unemployment above 11 percent, it's not working."

The vice presidential hopeful flew from Reno to Las Vegas where he visited a Romney victory center, thanked volunteers and called a few voters who had early voted for the Republican ticket. By the time Ryan arrived, Obama was on his way to Denver.

"We can early vote all the way through to tomorrow. I just made some calls in here and talked to some folks about making sure they get out and early vote," he told people outside the victory center. "This election is so important we need you to talk to your friends, your neighbors and even your relatives in this one, okay?"