By Seyi Gesinde
November 5, 2024
As the United States gears up for Election Day on November 5, 2024, the presidential race between Democratic candidate Vice President Kamala Harris and Republican candidate former President Donald Trump remains intensely competitive.
Campaign efforts on the eve of Election Day
Both candidates have been aggressively campaigning in critical battleground states in a final push to secure votes.
Kamala Harris focused her efforts primarily in Pennsylvania, a state with 19 electoral votes, the most among the key swing states.
She toured working-class regions, including Allentown, and concluded her day with a late-night rally in Philadelphia, featuring high-profile supporters such as Lady Gaga and Oprah Winfrey.
Donald Trump, on the other hand, held multiple rallies across North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Michigan.
He started his day in Raleigh, North Carolina, made two stops in Pennsylvania (in Reading and Pittsburgh), and ended with a late-night gathering in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Trump’s campaign events were supported by his sons and former Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly, despite their past contentious interactions.
Polling updates
The latest polling data indicates a closely contested race, with tight margins in key swing states.
According to FiveThirtyEight’s daily tracker, Kamala Harris holds a 12-point lead over Donald Trump nationally, although this lead has decreased from a month prior. In swing states, Harris has a slight one-point advantage in both Michigan and Wisconsin.
However, Trump maintains a narrow lead in Georgia, North Carolina, and Arizona, while the margins in Pennsylvania and Nevada are less than half a point, with Harris narrowly ahead in Pennsylvania and Trump leading in Nevada.
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Other polls suggest a similarly tight race, with some indicating Trump leading in all swing states by slim margins.
For example, an AtlasIntel poll shows Trump with a 1.8% edge over Harris in the swing states.
Early voting and voter turnout
More than 78 million Americans have already cast their votes early, with over 42.6 million early in-person votes and over 35.3 million mail ballots returned.
This significant early turnout underscores the high stakes and intense interest in the election.
Campaign messages and strategies
Kamala Harris has focused on a message of unity and optimism, avoiding direct attacks on Trump and emphasizing solutions and common ground.
Her campaign has highlighted a significant gender gap in early voting statistics and the robustness of their campaign infrastructure, which includes over 90,000 volunteers knocking on more than 3 million doors across critical states.
Donald Trump, meanwhile, has revived his “Make America Great Again” and “America First” slogans, emphasizing strict immigration policies and criticizing Democrats for economic issues such as inflation.
Trump has also attacked Harris and other Democratic figures, portraying a grim narrative about crime and migrants.
Historical significance
A victory for either candidate would be historic. Kamala Harris would become the first woman, the first Black woman, and the first individual of South Asian descent to occupy the Oval Office.
Donald Trump, if he wins, would be the first incoming president to face indictment and conviction for a felony and would become the second president in U.S. history to serve non-consecutive terms, following Grover Cleveland.
Election Day and beyond
On Election Day, Americans will cast their ballots to determine the next president, with both candidates needing at least 270 electoral votes to secure the presidency.
The key states of Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin are projected to play a significant role in determining the outcome.
Kamala Harris plans to watch the election results at her alma mater, Howard University in Washington, D.C., while Donald Trump’s campaign will hold an election watch event at the Beach Convention Center in Florida, where Trump has decided to cast his vote on Election Day despite earlier intentions to vote early.
