US Election Live: Donald Trump Casts His Vote In Florida, Says 'I Feel Very Confident'
2024 US Presidential Election News Live: In her final leg of campaign, Harris focused on a message of hope, unity, optimism, whereas Trump remained fiercely combative in targeting his Democratic rival
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Background
US Election Results 2024 LIVE: The final voting to elect the 47th president of the United States is set to begin on Tuesday (November 5), with both-- Republican former President Trump, and Democratic Vice President Harris-- predicting their victory as they campaigned across Pennsylvania on Monday in the final leg of an exceptionally close U.S. presidential election race. Both, Trump, 78, and Harris, 60, urged supporters in Pennsylvania, who have not yet cast their ballots, to show up on Election Day. The state reportedly offers the largest share of votes in the Electoral College of any of the seven battleground states expected to determine the outcome.
In her final days of the campaign, Vice President Harris focused on a message of hope, unity, optimism and women's rights whereas Trump remained fiercely combative in targeting his Democratic rival and even suggested that he may not accept the election outcome in case of a defeat. Nevertheless, opinion polls show both Trump and Harris virtually even.
Overall, the campaigns of two main rivals saw a series of head-spinning twists, with two assassination attempts and a felony conviction for Trump, and Harris' surprise elevation to the top of the ticket after President Joe Biden, 81, dropped his reelection bid under pressure from his own party.
More than USD 2.6 billion has been spent to sway the minds of 186 million Americans, who are eligible to vote, since March, according to AdImpact, an analytics firm.
When Will The US Election Start?
The final voting for the US Presidential election will be held on Tuesday, November 5, 2024. In most states, polling stations will open between 7 am and 9 am local time. Given the span of multiple time zones in the US, that would be between 5 pm to 7 pm IST
When Does Polling End?
Poll closing times differ from state to state and sometimes county to county, according to a report by Al Jazeera.
When Will The Results Be Declared?
Most states in the US normally have a predictable voting pattern, and in such states, the results are often clear soon after the voting. But a handful of key (swing) states may take time to call the races, which may delay the final and overall US presidential results. The swing states -- they are so-called because they can go either way unlike solidly Democratic and Republican states -- are Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Georgia, Arizona, and Nevada.
However, the winner declared after the election day counting is actually just a “projected” winner. The official president-elect is not declared until electoral votes are taken into account.
Who Are Electors?
Electors are allocated based on how many representatives a state has in the House of Representatives, plus its two senators. The District of Columbia gets three, despite the fact that the home to Congress has no vote in Congress. As per a report by the Associated Press, it varies by state, but often the electors are picked by state parties. Members of Congress cannot serve as electors.
What Is The Electoral College?
The Electoral College is a 538-member body that elects a president. Each state’s electors vote for the candidate who won the popular vote in that state. The runner-up gets nothing — except in Nebraska and Maine where elector votes are awarded based on congressional district and statewide results.
To win the presidency, a candidate must secure 270 electoral votes — a majority of the 538 possible votes.
How Is It Different From Popular Vote?
Under the Electoral College system, more weight is given to a single vote in a small state than to the vote of someone in a large state, leading to outcomes at times that have been at odds with the popular vote.
How And When Final Votes Are Counted?
After state election officials certify their elections, electors meet in their individual states — never as one body — to certify the election. This year, that will happen on December 17.
If the two candidates have a tied number of votes, the election is thrown to the House, where each state’s congressional delegation gets one vote. Once a state’s electors have certified the vote, they send a certificate to Congress. Congress then formally counts and certifies the vote at a special session on January 6. The vice president presides as the envelopes for each state are opened and verified.
US Election Live: Trump Says He Is 'Confident He Will Win
After casting his ballot, former President Donald Trump said he is “very confident” he will win the election and that “it won’t even be close,” while expressing frustration that it may take a while to call the results.
“I feel very confident,” Trump said. “I hear we’re doing very well everywhere.” He added that this was the “best” of the three campaigns he ran, CNN reported.
US Election Live: Voting Extended In Cambria County, Pennsylvania For 2 Hours
Voting has been extended in Cambria County, Pennsylvania for an extra two hours, giving voters an extended time to return to cast their votes after a software malfunction earlier in the day, a court has ruled, as reported by The Guardian.
"The [electronic voting system] software malfunction threatens to disenfranchise a significant number of voters," the Cambria County board wrote in its court filing.
US Election Live: Harris Does Last-Minute Radio Interviews For Key Voter Groups
Kamala Harris did a last-minute radio interviews targeting key voters groups on The Big K Morning Show with Larry Richert on NewsRadio KDKA in Pittsburgh. She spoke about immigration and bridging the political divide, and discussed how her policies would impact Black men and the historical implications of the election, Associated Press reported.
US Election Live: Trump Urges Voters To Stay In Line And Cast Ballots To 'Make America Great Again'
Donald Trump urged voters to cast ballots and stay in line no matter how long it took to "make America great again".
"It is now officially ELECTION DAY! This will be the most important day in American History. Voter enthusiasm is THROUGH THE ROOF because people want to Make America Great Again. That means lines are going to be long! I need you to deliver your vote no matter how long it takes. STAY IN LINE! The Radical Communist Democrats want you to pack up and go home. Together, we are going to have a tremendous victory and MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!" Trump tweeted.
It is now officially ELECTION DAY! This will be the most important day in American History.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 5, 2024
Voter enthusiasm is THROUGH THE ROOF because people want to Make America Great Again. That means lines are going to be long!
I need you to deliver your vote no matter how long it takes.…
US Election Live: When Will Polls Close Tonight?
The first polls tonight will close at 6 pm ET and are in the eastern counties of Indiana and Kentucky.
At 7pm ET, polls will close in Georgia, South Carolina, Vermont, Virginia, parts of Florida, and the rest of Indiana and Kentucky.
Thirty minutes later, at 7:30pm ET, polls in North Carolina, Ohio and West Virginia will close.
At 8pm, polls will close in Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, the District of Columbia, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Missouri, parts of Michigan, North Dakota, South Dakota and Texas, and the entire of Florida.
By 9pm ET, polls will close in Arkansas, as well as Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York, Wisconsin, Wyoming, the entire of Texas, Michigan, South Dakota and North Dakota.
At 10pm ET, polls in Montana, Nevada and Utah will close. At 11pm ET, polls in California will close, as well as Idaho, Oregon, and Washington.
At midnight, polls in Hawaii will close and finally, at 1am ET, polls will close in Alaksa. (The Guardian reported)
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