Kamala Harris and Donald Trump began a frantic last push across US swing states Sunday, with just over a day of campaigning left to secure a decisive edge in a bitterly fought and historically close presidential election.
“The fate of our nation is in your hands. On Tuesday, you have to stand up,” Trump told his first rally of the day in Pennsylvania, where he doubled down on unfounded claims of election rigging.
Over 76 million people have cast early ballots ahead of Tuesday’s climax and the battle is down to the wire – with more states functionally tied in polls at this point than in any comparable election.
The closeness of the race is all the more remarkable given its dramatic twists and the fact that the candidates could hardly be further apart in their campaign styles and visions for the future.
A final New York Times/Siena poll on Sunday flagged some incremental changes in the key battleground states, but the results from all seven remained firmly within the margin of error.
Harris – desperate to shore up the Great Lakes states seen as essential to any Democratic ticket – was to spend the day in Michigan, beginning in Detroit before a stop in Pontiac and an evening rally at Michigan State University.
Trump’s Sunday timetable centred on Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Georgia, the three biggest prizes in the “Electoral College” system that awards states influence according to their population.
Trump is expected to reject the results if he loses, as he did four years ago. On Sunday, he seized on isolated irregularities caught by election officials to amplify his claims of widespread “cheating.”
“They are fighting so hard to steal this damn thing,” he insisted at the rally.
Republicans are also scrambling to contain fallout in Pennsylvania – home to a large Puerto Rican community – after a speaker at Trump’s New York rally prompted outrage by describing the US territory as a “floating island of garbage.”
Harris wrapped a day on the campaign trail Saturday with a surprise appearance on “Saturday Night Live,” mocking her presidential election rival Donald Trump on the iconic sketch show.
“Keep Kamala and carry on-ala!” the vice president said in a well-received appearance alongside Maya Rudolph, the comedian who has been playing her as “America’s fun aunt” on the show.
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