Harris and Trump each need at least 270 electoral votes to win the presidency in an election seen as one of the most significant in recent US history. Trump, who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021, is seeking a return to the White House after losing to Joe Biden in the 2020 election. Harris has been serving as vice president since January 2021.
The election is expected to come down to a handful of battleground states — Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. CNN’s early exit polls project that Harris will win Massachusetts, Columbia, and Maryland.
Trump is leading in Missouri, Oklahoma, Alabama, District of Columbia, Tennessee, Florida, West Virginia, Indiana, and Kentucky. As per CNN projections, Trump has 54.2 per cent of the popular vote (14,023,637 votes), while Harris has 44.6 per cent of the popular vote (11,537,912 votes). Trump is leading with 90 electoral votes, while Harris has 27 electoral votes at 7 am (IST).
A candidate needs at least 270 out of 538 electoral votes to win the election. Overall, Trump is leading with 9,796,095 votes, while Harris has won 8,436,349 votes, according to early CNN exit polls.
There are four electoral votes at stake in West Virginia. Fifteen polling places in Georgia extended voting hours, with 12 of them due to Russia-originated bomb threats, CNN reported. “The FBI knows where it’s coming from, but we want to make sure, in the interest of public safety, that it doesn’t slow down anyone from voting,” Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said at a press conference about the bomb threats.
Georgia’s independent voters now favour Trump over Harris, a shift from the 2020 elections when Biden had won. A slim majority now backs Trump, according to CNN’s exit polls. Trump has retained his hold over voters without a college degree, where roughly 8 out of 10 chose him over Harris.
Harris is largely favoured among young voters and Black voters in Georgia, according to the initial results of CNN’s exit polls in the state. Roughly 86 per cent of Black Georgia voters say they cast their ballot for Harris, as do about 6 in 10 voters younger than 30. Roughly 4 in 10 Georgia voters call the economy their top issue.
Less than 3 in 10 Georgia voters say the state of democracy is their top issue; about 14 per cent say abortion, and around 10 per cent say immigration, with fewer than 5 per cent saying foreign policy. This contrasts with the national average, where democracy was the top issue.
Nearly 6 in 10 voters in Georgia disapproved of current US President Joe Biden, a sentiment similar to nationwide polls. North Carolina’s voters are nearly split on whether hurricane aid is reaching those in need. About 7 in 10 North Carolina voters say they are dissatisfied or angry about the country’s direction. Only about 6 per cent in the Tar Heel State said they are enthusiastic, while over 25 per cent said they are angry.
Voters in the state are closely divided on their top issue, with about 36 per cent prioritising the economy and about one-third saying democracy. Fewer chose abortion or immigration, with foreign policy last. CNN’s exit polls suggest that Trump will win Indiana, which has 11 electoral votes at stake.
CNN’s early exit polls also project that Trump will win Kentucky, which has eight electoral votes. It would take at least 270 electoral votes to win. Harris is projected to win Vermont, which has three electoral votes. A total of 270 electoral votes are needed to secure the presidency.
According to CNN’s initial national exit poll, roughly 46 per cent of voters hold a positive view of Harris but not of Trump, while about 42 per cent view Trump positively but not Harris. About 8 per cent of voters hold negative views of both candidates.
Seventy-two per cent of voters say they are dissatisfied or angry with the country’s direction. Forty-one per cent of voters approve of Joe Biden, while 67 per cent rate the economy as bad or poor.
Most voters said they decided on the presidential race well before Election Day, according to CNN’s initial national exit poll results. Eight in 10 voters say they decided on the presidential race before September. Fewer than 1 in 10 decided in the past week, with about one-eighth making their decision in September or October.
Deeply polarised views among voters are evident, with two-thirds believing this election is being conducted fairly and accurately, according to CNN’s initial exit polls. Around 9 in 10 Harris supporters say they’re confident, compared with about half of Trump supporters. About three-quarters of voters overall believe democracy in the US is under threat, with only one-quarter calling it secure. Nearly 4 in 10 see democracy as very threatened, and a wide majority of voters — about 7 in 10 — are concerned about potential election-related violence, according to CNN.
(ANI)