Trump and Biden to blitz swing states ahead of US election

Donald Trump and Joe Biden will make a last-minute pitch to voters on Monday ahead of Tuesday's presidential election, blitzing several swing states that could determine the outcome.

Mr Trump will hold rallies in four states – including in his Democratic opponent’s hometown of Scranton, Pennsylvania – amid signs that Mr Biden’s poll lead in the crucial battleground state is narrowing.

Mr Biden and his running mate, Kamala Harris, will also fan out across Pennsylvania, while the former vice-president will visit Ohio, a last-minute addition to his schedule that suggests Democrats are confident of flipping a state that Mr Trump won decisively in 2016.

The back-to-back events scheduled on the eve of election day follow an intense weekend of campaigning by both candidates. Despite a continuing rise in coronavirus infection rates, Mr Trump held outdoor rallies attended by thousands of people in five states on Sunday.

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Mr Biden took part in more socially distant events, including two drive-in events in Pennsylvania on Sunday. Former president Barack Obama will return to Florida today – his second visit to the sunshine state in a week – amid concerns about Democratic turnout in the state. A Washington Post-ABC poll on Sunday showed the race in Florida is a virtual tie.

The latest polls show that Mr Biden is leading in a clutch of swing states that will determine the election due to America’s unique electoral college system. The New York Times-Siena College poll published on Sunday put Mr Biden ahead in Pennsylvania, Arizona, Florida and particularly in Wisconsin, where he has opened up a substantial lead of 11 points.

But there were also encouraging signs for the Trump campaign. A poll by the respected Des Moines Register on Saturday night shows the US president leading by seven points in Iowa. As recently as September, the two candidates were tied, suggesting that the president is making up ground in Iowa, and possibly the broader midwest where he was victorious in 2016.

Early voters

The countdown to election day takes place against a backdrop of record-breaking early voting numbers.

More than 92 million people have already cast their vote, either in person or by mail, prompting expectations of record turnout in this year’s election.

Mr Trump, who has consistently questioned the validity of postal voting, renewed his attacks on mail-in ballots at a weekend rally in Pennsylvania, warning of “bedlam” in the swing state because a final result is not expected to be known on election night.

Officials expect the result in Pennsylvania – a state of 12 million people which Trump won by just 44,000 votes – to be crucial to the outcome of the election.