Two weeks until Election Day.
Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are neck-and-neck in the race for the White House. A new Reuters/Ipsos poll on Tuesday shows Harris with a slim national lead over Trump in an incredibly close election race, while a top Harris advisor says each of the seven battleground states could be decided by a single percentage point.
An exclusive USA TODAY/Suffolk University poll released Monday puts Harris at 45%, Trump at 44%, a closer race than the poll found in August.
Keep up with the USA TODAY Network’s live coverage of the 2024 election.
Donald Trump cancels virtual event with RFK Jr., Tulsi Gabbard
Trump may have mocked Harris for staying off the campaign trail Tuesday, but he canceled an event of his own as well.
The Republican candidate was set to do a “virtual town hall” on health issues with two prominent endorsers, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., and former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, D-Hawaii, but the campaign canceled the event because of scheduling changes.
Trump and Harris have repeatedly traded jabs in recent weeks about calling off events. Trump – who noted this morning that Harris is off the trail today, although she is sitting for a pair of television interviews – has said that he has as much energy these days as he has ever had.
Trump hosted an Hispanic roundtable this morning in Doral, Fla., and holds a rally tonight in Greensboro, North Carolina.
– David Jackson
Judge orders seizure of Rudy Giuliani’s property, but not World Series rings
Rudy Giuliani – or at least his son Andrew – gets to keep his three World Series rings. For now.
U.S. District Judge Lewis Liman ordered Giuliani on Tuesday to surrender his property to settle a $145 million civil judgment for defaming two Georgia election workers after the 2020 election by saying they stuffed ballot boxes.
The belongings at stake include a luxury New York apartment on Madison Avenue and a $2 million claim for legal fees against Donald Trump and the Republican National Committee.
Liman ruled that seizing the property would make it easier for election workers Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss to sell them. Giuliani had asked to delay trying to collect the legal fees from Trump until Nov. 6 to avoid influencing the election with “inaccurate” claims sparking a “media frenzy,” a proposal Liman rejected.
The judge said the ownership of the former New York mayor’s World Series rings will be determined separately, after his son Andrew Giuliani claimed he was given the rings in 2018.
– Bart Jansen
Donald Trump to appear on Joe Rogan podcast
Donald Trump is set to appear on “The Joe Rogan Experience,” one of the most popular podcasts in America. Trump will sit Friday for the interview, which comes after the former president has appeared on other podcasts such as Theo Von’s “This Past Weekend.”
Kamala Harris has also made her fair share of podcast appearances, including an interview on “Call Her Daddy” that focused on abortion access and other reproductive rights debates.
– David Jackson and Marina Pitofsky
When will the election results be announced?
It is not clear exactly when the election results will be announced, as the timing depends on a variety of factors. Each state handles its elections differently, ranging from weeks-long early voting to strict voter ID laws.
But you can anticipate delays.
Some key swing states that Donald Trump and Kamala Harris are vying for, like Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, aren’t permitted to start processing absentee and mail-in ballots until Election Day, which is expected to slow down the count.
– Sudiksha Kochi and Sam Woodward
The power of third-party candidates: Here’s how they could play a pivotal role on Election Day
Eminem to introduce Obama at Detroit rally
Slim Shady is hitting the campaign trail.
Eminem is set to introduce former President Barack Obama during a rally in Detroit on Tuesday, according to multiple reports. The rapper, who grew up in Detroit, has long criticized Donald Trump, even releasing a freestyle rap mocking the former president in 2017.
A slate of musicians have backed Harris’ White House bid, from Billie Eilish and Taylor Swift to Bruce Springsteen. Beyoncé gave Harris her blessing to use her song, “Freedom” as an unofficial campaign anthem.
– Marina Pitofsky
Trump chats up Hispanic supporters – and bashes Harris
Donald Trump used a roundtable event focused on Hispanic voters Tuesday to praise an important voting bloc and remind people that he is on the campaign trail today – unlike Harris.
“Who the hell takes off when you have 14 days left?” Trump said during the event in Doral, Fla.
Harris does have two media interviews on Tuesday, with NBC and Telemundo, as well as her vice presidential duties. “She will receive briefings and conduct internal meetings with staff,” her schedule says.
Meanwhile, the Doral event featured Hispanic supporters who praised Trump – and vice-versa.
“It’s an incredible community,” Trump said.
– David Jackson
Is Election Day a federal holiday?
Election Day is not a federal holiday.
But some states do observe Election Day as a holiday. State offices will be closed on Nov 5. in Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Montana, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Virginia and West Virginia.
Twenty-four states, plus the District of Columbia, offer paid time off to vote. Some states offer time off for voting but with no pay, including Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Massachusetts and Wisconsin.
– Olivia Munson
Trump campaign selling t-shirts off McDonald’s visit
After creating a viral moment on Sunday by sporting an apron and working as a fry cooker at a McDonald’s in Pennsylvania, the former president’s campaign is now selling “MAGADonald’s” t-shirts.
“I have a McGift for you!” the campaign’s online gift shop says above a t-shirt featuring a photo of Trump leaning out a drive-thru window.
The visit was called a stunt by some critics, but it was part of a larger effort by the Trump campaign to undermine Vice President Kamala Harris and her appeals to working-class and middle-class voters, specifically how she emphasized working at the $225 billion fast food chain in college.
— Phillip Bailey
Springsteen, Obama to headline concerts for Harris in Atlanta, Philly
With two weeks left until Election Day on Nov. 5, Kamala Harris is getting a boost from “The Boss.”
Music icon Bruce Springsteen will headline a series of concerts for Harris during the homestretch of the campaign, beginning with concerts Thursday in Atlanta and Monday in Philadelphia, the Harris campaign confirmed.
Springsteen, a longtime Democratic activist, will be joined by former President Barack Obama at both shows, with Harris scheduled to attend the Atlanta concert.
The Harris campaign is billing the concert series, dubbed “When we vote, we win,” as part of its get-out-the-vote strategy amid the early-voting period before the Nov. 5 election. Additional concerts are set to be announced in the coming days.
– Joey Garrison
Top Harris adviser says every battleground could come down to 1 point or less
Top Harris campaign adviser David Plouffe said the seven battlegrounds that will decide the election could each be decided by less than 1 percentage point and suggested Trump is likely to top his past performances in the popular vote.
“Historically, it would be unusual to have seven states come down to a point or less,” Plouffe said on CNN. “But I think at this point, you have to assume that’s a distinct possibility.”
Harris and Trump are running neck and neck in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Georgia, North Carolina, Arizona and Nevada. President Joe Biden won each except North Carolina in 2020.
Trump finished with 46.1% in the popular vote in the 2016 election he won over Hillary Clinton. He received 46.8% of the national vote in his Electoral College loss against Biden in 2020.
Plouffe, who was Barack Obama’s campaign manager in 2008, acknowledged Trump could reach a higher bar nationally this year.
“Democrats wish Donald Trump wouldn’t get more than 46% of the vote,” Plouffe told CNN, adding that in the battleground states, “that’s not reality. He’s going to get up to 48% in all of these states. And so we just have to make sure we’re hitting our win number, which depending on the state, could be 50, could be 49.5.”
− Joey Garrison
Harris will talk abortion rights in Texas on Friday
Vice President Harris will travel on Friday to Texas, home to some of the most restrictive abortion laws in the country, to talk about the “consequences of these bans on women’s lives,” according to her campaign.
Harris will appear with Rep. Colin Allred, who’s challenging Republican Sen. Ted Cruz.
One of Harris’ top surrogates on reproductive freedom has been Texas resident Amanda Zurawski, who almost died of sepsis after being denied an abortion and who led a lawsuit against Texas’ abortion bans.
−Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy
More: Harris leads Trump 2-1 among the earliest voters, many driven by abortion access
Republican former officials call for probe of Elon Musk’s $1 million petition prizes
Former Republican lawmakers, Justice Department officials and advisors have asked Attorney General Merrick Garland to investigate whether it’s illegal for billionaire Elon Musk to be handing out $1 million cash prizes to swing state voters if they sign his political organization’s petition.
The letter, sent Monday to Garland, argues that the prizes established by Musk as part of his effort to help elect former President Donald Trump, violate laws make it illegal to pay people for registering to vote.
“We are aware of nothing like this in modern political history,” says the letter, which was signed by 11 former Republican officials.
− Josh Meyer
More: Former GOP officials ask DOJ to probe Elon Musk $1 million giveaways to pro-Trump voters
What are Kamala Harris’ religious views?
Harris identifies as a Baptist − a major Protestant Christian denomination. She told the Associated Press in 2020 that she attends services at the Third Baptist Church of San Francisco.
But her religious background is quite mixed. Her father is a Christian while her mother was a Hindu. Harris’ husband, Doug Emhoff, is Jewish.
− Sudiksha Kochi
More: Voters Guide 2024: Where Harris and Trump stand on key issues
Harris targets Latino men with small biz boot camps and a pledge to hire more police
Vice President Kamala Harris released a new slate of proposals on Tuesday aimed at helping Latino men get ahead economically.
Harris said she’d push for legislation allowing construction workers and apprentices to write off tools and other equipment on their taxes, which her campaign estimates would affect 2 million people.
The vice president said he would fund “high-quality bilingual education and English language acquisition programs” and increase the number of college and career counselors in lower income schools, while funding small business boot camps for aspiring entrepreneurs.
Buried in the plan are promises to “end the shortage of police officers” by hiring 100,000 more nationwide.
– Francesca Chambers
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The campaign is stressful – but no gummies for Harris
Presidential elections are stressful, but Vice President Kamala Harris says she’s not using one potential wellness technique to temper anxiety during her presidential campaign: marijuana edibles.
The topic arose at a town hall-style exchange between Harris and journalist Maria Shriver on Monday in Royal Oak, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit.
“Everybody I talk to says you know, ‘I have to turn off the news − I can’t read anything, I’m meditating, I’m doing yoga. I’m so anxious… I’m eating gummies.’ All kinds of things. What are you doing?” Shriver asked, appearing to refer to cannabis gummies.
Laughing, Harris replied: “Not eating gummies.”
− Karissa Waddick and Darren Samuelsohn
More: Kamala Harris talks election stress: I’m ‘not eating gummies’
Vulgarities and football: Trump claims the dude vote
Donald Trump, who is leading in the polls with male voters, over the weekend referenced a golfing legend’s manhood, peppered his speeches with curse words and attended an NFL game to ensure he holds onto that key constituency.
It’s a strategy that involves doubling down on exciting the Republican presidential nominee’s most ardent supporters and emphasizing turnout among low propensity male voters with a hyper-masculine style, one his critics call a corrosive version of masculinity.
Meanwhile, he is barely nodding at − and may be alienating − the suburban women swing voters once considered key campaign targets.
− Zac Anderson
More: Crude talk and the NFL: Trump doubles down on his lead with male voters
How many days until Election Day?
There are 14 more days until Election Day, which is Nov. 5.
Many states have already started in-person early voting or in-person absentee early voting. Numerous national and state polls show that the 2024 race is very tight with both candidates essentially neck and neck.
The Harris and Trump campaign have been pushing out more events and interviews in the final two-week stretch.
− Sudiksha Kochi
Trump’s ‘mass deportation’ promise
If he returns to the White House, Donald Trump has vowed to launch a “mass deportation” of at least 11 million immigrants living in the U.S. without authorization.
He made a similar promise during his first administration. It didn’t pan out after he hit logistical and legal obstacles. Next time, experts say, things may be different.
A new USA TODAY/Suffolk University poll found 45% of respondents support Trump’s mass deportation proposal and 49% oppose it, with 4% undecided. The poll of 1,000 likely voters, taken by landline and cellphone Oct. 14 to 18, has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.
A second, more experienced Trump administration will know “how to effectively use an enormous bureaucracy to their advantage,” said César García Hernández, an Ohio State University law professor and author of “Migrating to Prison: America’s Obsession with Locking Up Immigrants.”
− Lauren Villagran, Bart Jansen and Aysha Bagchi
More: Donald Trump has promised a ‘mass deportation.’ It would cost billions.
Where do Kamala Harris and Donald Trump stand in the polls?
Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are neck-and-neck in presidential race polling. In Real Clear Politics’ average of 2024 surveys, Harris leads Trump by just 0.9 percentage points.
It’s even closer in some of the crucial swing states, such as Arizona, Michigan and Pennsylvania. For example, Trump leads Harris by 0.2 percentage points in the polling average of Wisconsin surveys.
– Marina Pitofsky
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When can you vote for president?
There are several ways you can vote in the general election. Depending on where you live, you can vote early either by mail or in person. You can also wait to go to a polling location on Nov. 5, which is Election Day, to cast your ballot.
USA TODAY has a breakdown of when early voting has started or will begin in the states. The first state in the country to begin voting was Alabama, which sent around absentee ballots on Sept. 11. Alabama does not have an option for in-person early voting.
Seven states are expected to open up options for in-person early voting or in-person absentee early voting on Monday, including Alaska, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, South Carolina and Texas.
– Sudiksha Kochi and Fernando Cervantes Jr.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Election 2024 live updates: Trump, Harris polls with 2 weeks left
