Election 2024 live updates as Trump vs. Harris polls show tight presidential race

In an election mail security briefing, U.S. Postal Service officials acknowledged initial delays in election mail, but said they’ve been working to resolve the issues. 

USPS has also made what they describe as significant investments in increasing the security of election mail, including the installation of new high-security collection boxes and electronic locks, among other things. 

USPS also works with the Justice Department and FBI to respond to reports of mail theft and investigate them. 

Harris will deliver her closing-argument speech on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, exactly one week before Election Day, according to sources familiar with the planning. 

The Washington Post was first to report the upcoming remarks.

Police have identified a suspect arrested in connection with three shootings targeting a Democratic National Committee office in Tempe, Arizona, since September. 

Jeffrey Michael Kelly, 60, was also arrested for allegedly hanging suspicious bags of white power from political signs lined with razor blades in the nearby village of Ahwatukee, according to the Tempe Police Department. 

Police announced the arrest Tuesday. Kelly is charged with several felonies, including committing an act of terrorism, unlawful discharge of a firearm and shooting at a non-residential structure. He is also charged with criminal damage, a misdemeanor. 

Read more here. 

Speaking to reporters after voting early in his home state of Minnesota, Walz said the last 24 hours have been “a bit shaking” following a report from The Atlantic about Trump’s comments about the military and service members that he says shows his “descension into madness.”

“Donald Trump made it very clear that this is an election about Donald Trump taking full control of the military to use against his political enemies, taking full control of the Department of Justice to prosecute those who disagree with him, taking full control of the media on what is told and what is told to the American public,” the Democratic vice presidential nominee said.

Walz referenced comments Trump made about Hitler, according to his former chief of staff John Kelly, and argued those who worked for the former president are issuing warnings about him.

“The opportunity here and the absolute requirement of Americans is to understand that this rhetoric has not been used in this country, certainly not by a party’s presidential nominee, and the opportunity here is to elect Kamala Harris,” he said.

Walz echoed comments from Kelly, a former Marine general, about Trump’s understanding of the Constitution.

“Donald Trump doesn’t understand the Constitution nor does he respect the rule of law,” he said. “If there was ever a red line, he has stepped across it.”

Walz closed with an appeal to the American people two weeks before Election Day: “Go look. Go see what he’s saying and watch this descension.”

GOP vice presidential candidate Sen. JD Vance is campaigning in Las Vegas on Wednesday, as Republicans try to flip the crucial battleground state of Nevada. He highlighted housing, blasting the Biden-Harris administration for “failing” to do its job on the issue, among other economic issues that are particularly salient for voters in the Silver State, while lambasting the Democratic presidential nominee for her serious tone in recent weeks of the campaign. 

“The joy is gone from the Kamala Harris campaign,” Vance said, accusing Harris of scolding his running mate. 

Vance said Harris is “acting like a vice principal” who had called a child into the office, while contrasting her behavior with his running mate’s disposition. 

“Do you want Kamala Harris who’s going to scold you when you’re having a good time?” Vance asked, rhetorically. 

The Ohio Republican also leaned in on immigration, another issue that has been particularly relevant for Nevada voters, promising stronger border security under a Trump administration. 

Harris delivered brief remarks from outside her residence at the Naval Observatory about comments John Kelly, a former Marine general who served as Trump’s chief of staff, made about the former president to The New York Times.

Kelly said Trump matched the definition of a fascist and had spoken positively about Adolf Hitler.

“Donald Trump said that because he does not want a military that is loyal to the United States Constitution,” Harris said. “He wants a military that is loyal to him. He wants a military who will be loyal to him personally.”

The vice president called it “deeply troubling and incredibly dangerous” for Trump to invoke Hitler and said it further shows the American people who he is.

“Donald Trump is increasingly unhinged and unstable,” she said.

Harris said Trump wants “unchecked power.”

“The question in 13 days will be what do the American people want?” she said.

From Walter Cronkite anchoring election night coverage in 1952 to the 2020 results, take a look back on CBS News’ election coverage. 

Ashley Spillane is on a national tour with her Civic Responsibility Project. She joins “CBS Mornings Plus” from Madison, Wisconsin, to talk about using celebrity influence to strengthen democracy.

Trump called into a radio show hosted by conservative commentator Mark Levin on Wednesday morning, where he pushed listeners to cast their ballots early while continuing to sow doubt about the integrity of the election.

“They have to get out, ideally, get out early. But get out,” Trump said during the appearance. “I’ve been very strong at that, just make sure you get out. And we have to watch very carefully that this is going to be a fair election.”

The Republican presidential nominee also criticized Catholics who support Harris, questioning, “If you’re Catholic, how can you vote for Kamala?” He said Catholic voters who back his opponent should have to explain themselves. 

During a separate appearance on a radio show hosted by Fox News host Brian Kilmeade, Trump said he would be voting early in Florida.

“I have the old standard of the Tuesday vote and all. A lot of people like to vote, and I really miss you know, the main thing to me is you’ve got to vote. You got to vote,” he said. “Voting early, I guess, would be good. But you know, people — I’ll have different feelings about it. But the main thing is you got to get out. You got to vote. And I’ll be voting early. I’ll be running early.”

The Democratic National Committee launched a new ad campaign that targets voters on college campuses in the battleground states and four others, it announced. The ads will be shown on campus buses, bus shelters, billboards, flyers, kiosks and posters, and direct students to a website where they can find information about voting early.

The campaign comes on the heels of the DNC’s “I Will Vote” Snapchat campaign, which coincided with the last leg of Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour that kicked off in Miami.

Ads will be featured in the battleground states of Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, as well as Florida, Iowa, New York and Ohio.

With Election Day less than two weeks away, a new survey shows Americans are stressed about the future of the nation, the economy and the presidential election. Dina Demetrius reports on how to cope.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Wednesday said that any Labour Party election workers in the U.S. were there as volunteers after claims by the Trump campaign that the party had “recruited and sent party members to campaign for Kamala in critical battleground states, attempting to influence our election.”

The Trump campaign filed an FEC complaint on Tuesday night, accusing the Labour Party of “illegal foreign campaign contributions and interference in our elections.”

The complaint referenced media reports about meetings between Labour and Democrat officials, and a now-deleted LinkedIn post in which a Labour staffer said there were “nearly 100 Labour Party staff (current and former) going to the U.S. in the next few weeks” to swing states, according to The Associated Press. 

Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz is voting in the 2024 election in St. Paul, Minnesota, Wednesday morning. Walz was joined by his wife, Gwen and son, Gus. When asked by CBS News how it feels to have his son, who is 18, voting with him for the first time, the vice presidential candidate said “I’m excited about it.”

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said the state is seeing record early voting turnout with just under two weeks until Election Day, with nearly 27% of active voters having already cast their ballots. 

“Georgia is having continuing records every day, it seems, with early voting turnout,” Raffensperger said. “By lunch, we should cross the incredible hallmark of 2 million voters casting their ballots already.”

Raffensperger, who in 2021 resisted Trump’s urging to “find” more than 11,000 votes and overturn the results of the election in the Peach State, said the milestone proves that in Georgia, “it’s easy to vote and hard to cheat.”

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said at a news conference on Wednesday that the state has the cleanest voter rolls in the nation, pointing to technological advancements in its voter registration technology and a new cancellation portal.

“Georgia has the cleanest voter list in the entire country,” Raffensperger said, adding that  “Georgia can trust in their elections.”

Raffensperger said other states haven’t been able to get to the level of detail that his office achieved through an audit process, citing Georgia’s emphasis on technological advancements, along with its willingness to work with other government agencies. 

The secretary of state also called Georgia a “model” for preventing noncitizens from voting. The state found 20 individuals who were identified as noncitizens, Chief Operating Officer Gabriel Sterling said.

Sterling said noncitizen voting, an issue that Republicans have expressed serious concerns about, is “rare,” especially in Georgia. 

“In Georgia, we know we have the best system in America of stopping it on the front end,” he added.

As abortion continues to be a focal point of Democrats’ campaigns for Congress and Vice President Kamala Harris’ bid for the White House, the issue has also taken on a prominent role in state supreme court races as judges are tasked with determining access.

Voters in at least 30 states will decide who will fill 69 state supreme court seats in judicial elections, with the ideological balances of two high courts — in Michigan and Ohio — at stake. In both of those states and several others, including North Carolina, Kentucky and Montana, state high courts have decided high-profile cases and could see their compositions shift in November.

Read more here. 

With Election Day approaching, candidates up and down the ballot are making their final push to reach voters. CBS News Texas has been following the polls and covering political events all year long in a quest to find the Texas State of Mind.

But ultimately, it’s the people who matter and who will decide what happens. In an effort to get a better understanding of what voters across the Lone Star State will be thinking about as they cast their ballots, reporter Jason Allen and a CBS News Texas crew are spending the weeks leading up to the election traveling across the state, speaking to people from the Chihuahuan Desert to the Pineywoods.

Last week, Jason traveled to the Texas High Plains. This week, we head to the southernmost region in the state: the Rio Grande Valley.

Read more from CBS News Texas and watch the full report in the player above. 

Early voting expanded this week across Cook County, and on Tuesday night, CBS News Chicago talked with some people casting their ballots ahead of Election Day.

As of Tuesday night, nearly 107,000 ballots had been received in Chicago—including those cast in person and by mail. Among those who have already voted or are waiting to cast their ballots, CBS News Chicago did not find any undecided voters.

Underneath the Clark/Lake ‘L’ stop downtown, ballots are being counted at Chicago’s voting Supersite.

William Howell, Professor of American Politics, University of Chicago

“The stakes of this election are incredibly high, and it’s close,” said William Howell, the Sydney Stein Professor of American Politics at the University of Chicago. “I think Chicago is going to clearly break blue, and Illinois at the top of the ticket is going to break blue.”

Read more from CBS Chicago.

Mondaire Jones and Mike Lawler are in one of the most closely watched House races in  New York’s 17th Congressional District, which represents all of Rockland and Putnam counties and parts of Westchester and Dutchess.

CBS News New York is hosting a live debate between the candidates Wednesday night in New York City. 

You can watch the debate live on CBS News New York. 

You can also find our stream on the free CBS News App, Pluto TV and other streaming services.

The debate will also be broadcast on New York 55.

Read more here. 

Eminem endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris at a rally with Obama at a rally in Detroit, Eminem’s hometown.

“As most of you know, the city of Detroit and the whole state of Michigan mean a lot to me. And going into this election, the spotlight is on us more than ever,” Eminem, a longtime critic of former President Donald Trump, told the crowd. “And I think it’s important to use your voice. So I’m encouraging everybody to get out and vote.”

Obama walked out to Eminem’s “Lose Yourself,” saying “my palms are sweaty,” a line from the song. He then rapped several lines from “Lose Yourself.” 

Trump’s former chief of staff John Kelly in a pair of interviews released Tuesday voiced serious concerns about Trump’s ability to lead, saying he fits “the general definition of fascist,” had privately praised Adolf Hitler and his generals — and would govern like a dictator if he returns to the White House.

The Trump campaign denied Kelly’s accounts in both stories.

Democratic vice-presidential nominee Tim Walz on Tuesday night responded to a report in The Atlantic that Trump had praised Hitler’s generals, saying it made him “sick as hell.”

“The guardrails are gone,” Walz said. ” Trump is descending into this madness. A former president of the United States and the president of the United States says he wants generals like Adolf Hitler had. Think about it. And he already has the Supreme Court in his pocket. They’ve effectively given him full immunity.”

Vice President Kamala Harris, asked by NBC News’ Hallie Jackson if her team has a plan, should Trump declare victory on election night before all the votes are counted, said she’ll be ready.

“We’ve got two weeks to go, and I’m very much grounded in the present, in terms of the task at hand, and we will deal with election night and the days after, as they come, and we have the resources and the expertise and the focus on that, as well,” she told Jackson in an interview that aired Tuesday on “NBC Nightly News”