Voting begins in US with Trump and Harris neck and neck in polls

• Posted on November 5, 2024November 5, 2024
• by Nana Kwesi Coomson
• Comment

Summary

• Election day voting has begun in the United States, with Donald Trump and Kamala Harris vying to become the next president
• Harris has advocated for abortion rights and pledged to lower food and housing costs for working families
• Trump has vowed to seal the border and has proposed tax cuts worth trillions
• Americans aren’t just choosing the president – they’re also picking members of the US Congress, and some states are voting on abortion rights
• More than 82 million people voted before election day – check our poll tracker here
• When will we know the winner? It could take days – or it could be soon after polls close

Candidates Profile:

Kamala Harris, US vice-president

Age: 60

Party: Democratic Party

Campaign promises: Harris’s catchphrase is “We are not going back”, referring to the policies of former president Donald Trump. She supports abortion rights, has launched an economic plan to ban price gouging at the grocery store, and says she will “end America’s housing shortage”.

Major moment of 2024: Her headlining speech at the Democratic National Convention in August, barely a month after Joe Biden dropped out of the race.

Donald Trump, former US President

Age: 78

Party: Republican Party

Campaign promises: Trump says he will “seal the border” to halt illegal immigrants, has pledged across-the-board tax cuts, proposed a 10% tariff on all US imports and vowed to “drill, baby, drill” to bring down energy prices.

Major moment of 2024: Surviving an assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, a lasting image of which showed him with his fist in the air and blood on his face.

-BBC