Do or die battle for Trump and Biden as US presidential elections enter last stretch
The US presidential elections entered its last stretch on Sunday with the two candidates, Republican incumbent Donald Trump and his Democratic challenger Joe Biden, leaving no stone unturned to swing votes in their favour.
Trump, 74, and Biden, 77, and their campaigns are making a last ditch effort to convince voters of their plans and policies if voted to power, with polls indicating that the race is tightening more than ever and making it a do or die battle for the two leaders.
Till Saturday, more than 92 million Americans have already cast their ballots, setting a new record. This includes 33 million in-person votes and 58 million mail-in ballots.
However, all eyes are on November 3, the day of polling and the counting of votes would start soon after the closing of votes, which changes from state to state and also depends on the time zone.
Fighting the toughest political battle of his life, Trump spent his entire Saturday in Pennsylvania, a key battleground state, addressing as many as four rallies.
Pennsylvania, as per American political analysts, has emerged as the key battleground state which is a must win for Trump to retain his White House residency for another four years.
In Pennsylvania, Trump is trailing behind Biden by four percentage points, according to the latest average of polls by Real Clear Politics.
In battleground states, Biden is leading by 3.7 percentage points.
Both candidates are competing to win electoral college votes. Each state gets a certain number of electoral college votes partly based on its population and there are a total of 538 up for grabs, so the winner is the candidate that wins 270 or more on Tuesday.
Both Trump and Biden were off to key states for last-minute election campaigning.
Trump left for another round of election rallies to five battleground states –Washington in Michigan, Dubuque in Iowa, Hickory in North Carolina; Rome in Georgia and Opa-Locka in Florida.
Biden is travelling to Pennsylvania to discuss bringing Americans together to address the crises facing the country and winning the battle for the soul of the nation, his campaign said.
He will deliver remarks at a “Souls to the Polls” event in Philadelphia to get out the vote with faith voters and leaders.
He is also scheduled to deliver remarks at a drive-in event in Philadelphia.
A day earlier, Biden was joined by former US President Barack Obama for two rallies in Michigan.
Biden’s running mate Senator Kamala Harris has campaign stops on Sunday in Georgia and North Carolina.
Before leaving on his day long campaign trail, Trump in a tweet exuded confidence that his numbers are looking very good.
“Our numbers are looking VERY good all over. Sleepy Joe is already beginning to pull out of certain states. The Radical Left is going down!” he said.
“People have long been voting but Joe Biden has still not released his Supreme Court List of Radical Left Judges that he would like to put on the Court.
Also, is he going to the Court Pack? He thinks he can bluff his way through these two important questions. Can only vote against!!!” Trump said in a series of tweets.
Ahead of his rallies in Michigan, a battleground state, Trump tweeted: “When I originally became your all time favourite President, the Great State of Michigan was hemorrhaging car companies and jobs. Plants were closing and moving to Mexico, and other places. No new plants for decades. ”
“I stopped the moves, & now many plants are and have been built...,” he said,
“The place was a mess and would have lost much more business if I hadn't come along. Many new plants are starting. Foreign countries and companies now treat the USA, and Michigan, with respect. Big jobs plans. Please remember this when you go to cast your very important vote!” said the president.
Biden in a series of tweets reiterated that the country can no longer afford another four years of Trump.
“Right now: - Almost 23 million Americans are on unemployment.
- Nearly 1 in 5 small businesses have closed their doors.
- Millions of people are at risk of being evicted. We simply can't afford another four years of Donald Trump,” Biden tweeted and urged his supporters to return their ballots.
“We need to: Build bridges, not walls. Open our arms, not clench our fists. Focus on the ties that bind us together, not tear each other apart. We need to be what we are at our best: One America,” Biden tweeted.
“We have in our hands the ultimate power: the power of the vote. Don't let it go to waste. Make your plan to vote today,” he said in another tweet.
Early in the morning, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette said that it is endorsing Trump because of his policies on jobs, trade China and fracking.
“No one ever asked the American people, or the people in ‘flyover,’ country, if they wanted to send their jobs abroad — until Mr. Trump. He has moved the debate, in both parties, from free trade, totally unfettered, to managed, or fair, trade. He has put America first, just as he said he would,” the newspaper said.
“But the Biden-Harris ticket offers us higher taxes and a nanny state that will bow to the bullies and the woke who would tear down history rather than learning from history and building up the country,” the newspaper said.
