JD Vance turned away from Pittsburgh sandwich shop

A sandwich shop made a meal out of an unannounced visit by JD Vance, turning the vice-presidential candidate away during a campaign pitstop.

The senator attempted to gain entry into Primanti Bros in North Versailles, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, but was denied by staff, alarmed at the sudden arrival of his entourage.

The 90-year-old business subsequently reversed course to serve Mr Vance and his team, avoiding threats of a boycott from customers inside the store who had wanted to meet Donald Trump’s running mate.

Mr Vance told supporters outside in the parking lot afterwards that the outlet and its staff were blameless, calming down any tensions. Pennsylvania is a key swing state in the November election and the last thing Mr Vance – or the restaurant for that matter – will have wanted is a riot over a sandwich in a state where every vote will count.

He said: “The manager just freaked out a little bit because there were a lot of people, and she didn’t want to make her restaurant part of a campaign stop.

“We went in there. We paid for everybody’s food. We gave them a nice tip. And of course when I gave them a nice tip I said ‘no taxes on top’.”