US elections 2024: Polling underway to elect 47th United States President

The 2024 US presidential election is nearing its conclusion with millions of Americans heading to the polls on Tuesday to decide between two sharply contrasting visions for the country.

After months of intense campaigning, billions of dollars spent, and unprecedented events—including two assassination attempts on former President Donald Trump, President Joe Biden’s surprise withdrawal, and Kamala Harris’s rapid rise—the race remains neck and neck.

As the polls opened across the country, early voting in Dixville Notch, New Hampshire, mirrored the divided nature of the election. The six registered voters in the small town split their votes between Harris and Trump in a symbolic early tally just past midnight.

Across the East Coast and Midwest, voters began heading to polling stations early Tuesday morning, with long lines reported in some areas. In Raleigh, North Carolina, Johnny Graves set up a DJ booth outside the Lincoln A.M.E. Church to energize morning voters, playing upbeat tracks like Miley Cyrus’s “Party in the U.S.A.” to create a festive atmosphere.

Among the voters, a mix of enthusiasm and frustration was apparent. Taylor Grabow, a 27-year-old nurse, said she voted for Harris this time after supporting Trump in 2016 and President Biden in 2020. Grabow cited Harris’s opposition to criminalizing abortions as a key factor in her decision. “I woke up in such a good mood and feeling excited,” she said.

Meanwhile, in Asheville, North Carolina, 38-year-old stay-at-home mom Ginny Buddenberg, accompanied by her twin daughters, cast her vote for Trump. Buddenberg expressed concerns about the increasing politicization of education. “There’s just a lot of politics in the classroom, and I feel like there’s too much of a push about politics and introducing different kinds of sexual education at a younger and younger age,” she said. “Let’s go to school and learn how to read.”

The election remains highly contested, with both candidates concentrating their efforts on the critical battleground states of Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin—states that collectively hold 93 electoral votes. Opinion polls indicate that the candidates are running neck and neck in these states, which are likely to determine the overall winner.

Polling data from Reuters/Ipsos shows Harris leading among women by 12 percentage points, while Trump holds a 7-point advantage among men. Both candidates have spent considerable time in these states, where narrow margins are expected.

Trump’s campaign has suggested he may declare victory on election night, even if millions of ballots remain uncounted, as he did in 2020. He has repeatedly claimed that any defeat could only result from widespread voter fraud, echoing his baseless assertions from the previous election. With tight margins expected in key states, the winner may not be known for several days.

Regardless of the outcome, the election will mark a historic moment. If Harris, 60, prevails, she would become the first woman, first Black woman, and first South Asian American to be elected president. For Trump, 78, a victory would make him the first president in more than a century to win non-consecutive terms, following his impeachment and criminal conviction during his first term.

As voters across the nation cast their ballots, the outcome of this highly polarized election remains uncertain.

Trump has employed increasingly fiery rhetoric, warning of dire consequences under a second Biden administration, while Harris has urged Americans to unite, cautioning that another term for Trump would undermine the foundations of American democracy.

The race is set to be decided by a few key battlegrounds that could shift the electoral balance in either direction.