Summary

  • Both Harris and Trump are due to hold their final rallies of the campaign in the coming hours

  • Trump will speak in Grand Rapids, Michigan, while Harris takes to the stage in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

  • At an earlier rally in North Carolina, Trump announced that he intends to place 25% tariffs on all Mexican imports if they "don't stop" migrants from crossing the border

  • Harris told a Pennsylvania crowd that "America is ready for a fresh start"

  • More than 81 million people have already voted in what polls suggest is a historically close election - check our tracker here

  1. Number of early voters much higher than usualpublished at 12:42 Greenwich Mean Time 4 November

    Voters queue in front of a polling stationImage source, EPA

    Over 75 million Americans have already voted in the presidential election, which could suggest a bigger than usual turnout this year.

    It's not the highest ever - there were 101.5 million early ballots in 2020. But that was largely due to Covid keeping many away from crowded polling stations.

    With one day of early voting left, the 75 million figure easily surpasses the total early votes cast in 2016 (47.2 million) and 2012 (46.2 million).

  2. What can unite voters on election day? An 'I voted' stickerpublished at 12:22 Greenwich Mean Time 4 November

    Across the US, poll workers hand out colourful "I voted" stickers as a reward for voting.

    The designs can vary from generic to vibrant, depending on where a person lives. While standard red, white and blue stickers are widely available, some US counties and states create unique illustrations that reflect local culture and landmarks.

    A few local governments even hold contests, allowing children to submit drawings to be turned into stickers - boosting voter enthusiasm when their ideas go viral.

    With polls opening tomorrow, here are a few standouts from this year:

    Diamond-shaped stickers with red, white and blue feature the outlines of various Las Vegas landmarks and hotels and the text "I voted"Image source, Getty Images
    Image caption,

    These stickers featuring the Las Vegas Strip were handed out to Nevada voters during early voting days in October

    An abstract peach illustration on a round white sticker is surrounded by green text that reads "I voted" in various languagesImage source, Getty Images
    Image caption,

    For years, Georgia voters have been receiving designs that feature peaches, a symbol of the swing state

    Round tan stickers feature illustrations of various California symbols and text that reads "I voted!"Image source, Getty Images
    Image caption,

    In the San Francisco area, California voters picked up stickers with poppies, sea lions and the Golden Gate Bridge during early voting this autumn

    A round black sticker features a werewolf as it howls and tears off a shirt in front of an American flagImage source, AFP via Getty Images
    Image caption,

    This design, available in Michigan, was among several winners in a state-wide contest. It features a werewolf drawn by a 12-year-old girl

    Three round stickers are shown on a strip of paper. Two feature a cartoon ballot with a baseball hat that is giving a thumbs up. The third features catci, desert plants and a phoenix. All three have text that says "I voted, Maricopa County"Image source, AFP via Getty Images
    Image caption,

    These stickers were given out to voters in Maricopa County, Arizona

  3. Watch: US swing states and why they matterpublished at 12:12 Greenwich Mean Time 4 November

    Media caption,

    The BBC's North America editor Sarah Smith explains all

  4. What do the latest polls show?published at 12:04 Greenwich Mean Time 4 November

    A flurry of polls arrived over the weekend, each showing slightly different figures.

    If you draw out the overall trends, rather than the individual points, Kamala Harris is just a point ahead in the national polls - with 48% to Donald Trump's 47%.

    But the national vote shares won't determine the winner, which will likely be decided in seven battleground states that were very close last time and could be decisive in this election.

    Trump has an edge of one to three points in each of Georgia, Arizona and North Carolina.

    The other battlegrounds are even tighter. Trump is polling just slightly higher in Pennsylvania and Nevada, while Harris looks marginally ahead in Michigan and Wisconsin.

    Important to remember: Right now the leads in the swing states are so small that it's impossible to know who is really ahead, because the individual polls that are used to create these averages usually have a margin of error of around three to four percentage points. Because the leads in all of the seven states fall within that margin, it means in reality, either candidate could have the edge.

    Graph showing the latest polling data in swing states - they suggest Trump is ahead in Pennsylvania, Nevada, North Carolina, Georgia and Arizona; Kamala Harris is ahead in Michigan and Wisconsin.
  5. America wakes up to the last full day of campaigningpublished at 11:55 Greenwich Mean Time 4 November

    Sam Hancock
    Live page editor

    We've just taken you on a whistle-stop tour of what a handful of countries around the world think about the upcoming US election result, including some, such as Ukraine and Israel, which will require the winning candidate's attention from day one.

    If you missed that, just scroll down and have a read of our last five posts.

    With parts of the US now beginning to wake up, we should have some campaign news before long - as we've been reporting, it's the last full day Kamala Harris and Donald Trump have to convince undecided voters before polls open tomorrow.

    You can read more about their scheduled movements in our earlier post, but for now we'll continue to bring you the latest updates and analysis that we have. Stay with us, and remember you can watch the BBC News channel's ongoing coverage of the US election at the top of this page.

  6. Election comes at pivotal time for US-China relationshippublished at 11:22 Greenwich Mean Time 4 November

    Laura Bicker
    China correspondent

    In China, people are following the US election with keen interest and some anxiety. They fear what could happen next at home and abroad, whoever wins the White House.

    “None of us wants to see a war,” says Xiang, who's in his 60s, as the music playing in a park in Beijing reaches a crescendo and a nearby dancer elegantly spins his partner. He has come to Ritan Park to learn dance with other seniors.

    They gather here regularly, just a few hundred metres from the Beijing home of the American ambassador to China.

    In addition to new dance moves, the looming US election is also on their minds. It comes at a pivotal time between the two superpowers, with tensions over Taiwan, trade and international affairs running high.

    "I am worried that Sino-US relations are getting tense," Xiang tells me. "Peace is what we want."

    Donald Trump and Xi Jinping stand in front of a flower garden; Xi points and Trump laughsImage source, Getty Images
    Image caption,

    Donald Trump travelled to Beijing in 2017, while president, to meet Chinese leader Xi Jinping

  7. How do Israelis and Palestinians feel about the election?published at 11:10 Greenwich Mean Time 4 November

    Lucy Williamson
    Middle East correspondent

    For many people in Jerusalem, good allies never pressure, criticise or constrain. The war in Gaza has helped drive a wedge between Israel and its US ally.

    Kamala Harris has been more outspoken in calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, and has put more emphasis on humanitarian issues.

    After meeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House in July, Harris said she would "not be silent" about the situation in Gaza.

    Donald Trump has framed ending the war in terms of Israel’s “victory”, and has opposed an immediate ceasefire in the past, reportedly telling Netanyahu “do what you have to do”.

    But many Palestinians see little hope in either candidate. “The overall estimation is that the Democrats are bad, but if Trump is elected it’ll be even worse,” said Mustafa Barghouti, a Palestinian analyst and politician.

  8. The next US president and Ukraine's borderspublished at 10:53 Greenwich Mean Time 4 November

    James Waterhouse
    Ukraine correspondent

    A Ukrainian soldier leans against some barbed wireImage source, Reuters

    We're continuing to bring you some of the global views on this election, which you'll see in our next few posts.

    It was in Zaporizhzhia in 2023, on this south-eastern part of the front line, where Ukraine launched a counteroffensive it hoped would force out the Russian invaders.

    Instead, after little to no progress, Ukraine’s ambitions have switched to survival. Missiles and glide bombs slam into towns and cities daily, and its soldiers weather constant Russian attacks.

    While Democratic Vice-President Kamala Harris has suggested military aid would continue if she emerged the victor, her powers could be constrained by a Republican-run Congress. And the pipeline of military support, which so far totals more than $50bn (£39bn), is looking less likely to be sustained under a second term for Donald Trump.

    Whoever becomes the next US president will have a profound impact on Ukraine’s borders and everyone who lives within them.

  9. A tight election could suit Russiapublished at 10:39 Greenwich Mean Time 4 November

    Steve Rosenberg
    Russia editor

    Vladimir Putin, sitting in front of a Russia flag, looks off to his rightImage source, EPA

    You don’t need to be a seasoned political pundit to understand that out on the campaign trail it’s what Donald Trump has been saying, not Kamala Harris, that’s guaranteed to put a smile on the face of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

    For instance, Trump’s criticism of the scale of US military assistance for Ukraine, his apparent reluctance to blame Putin for Russia’s full-scale invasion and, during the presidential debate, his refusal to say whether he wants Ukraine to win the war.

    By contrast, Harris has argued that support for Ukraine is in America’s “strategic interest” and she has referred to Putin as “a murderous dictator”.

    There’s another possible outcome that may well suit the Kremlin - a super tight election, followed by a contested result.

    An America consumed by post-election chaos, confusion and confrontation would have less time to focus on foreign affairs, including the war in Ukraine.

  10. What the US election means for Indiapublished at 10:31 Greenwich Mean Time 4 November

    Soutik Biswas
    India correspondent

    In the closing stages of the US election, we’ve been looking at what the vote could mean for countries around the world. Here’s the view from Delhi.

    Indian experts see the US election as pivotal for India-US trade, immigration, energy, and defence ties.

    Kamala Harris is expected to continue the Biden administration’s multilateral approach, supporting regional partnerships and boosting trade relations with India, which has seen a rise under her administration.

    Donald Trump, however, may revive tariffs and a protectionist stance, potentially impacting India’s exports - he previously dubbed India the “Tariff King”. Yet, his presidency could help India replace Chinese imports in the US, although with trade risks.

    On immigration, Harris favours expanding H-1B visas crucial for India’s IT sector, while Trump may tighten rules for unskilled workers, offering mixed outcomes for Indian professionals. In defence, Harris focuses on Indo-Pacific alliances, while Trump backs the Quad, both bolstering India’s defence capabilities.

    India has historically fostered strong ties with both Republican and Democratic administrations, with Prime Minister Modi building a close rapport with Trump and further deepening bilateral relations under Biden. Though Trump has praised Modi, his remarks on tariffs hint at possible economic friction, with a potential win bringing tougher trade demands on “reciprocal” tariffs.

    Harris’s Indian heritage has little resonance with Indians, as her public identity leans more toward her African and Caribbean roots from her Jamaican father. Unlike former UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, she hasn’t prominently embraced her Indian background.

  11. Data gives confidence to both sides, strategist sayspublished at 10:07 Greenwich Mean Time 4 November

    People wait in line to vote on Florida's last early voting day for the 2024 presidential election in Florida, at the Miami-Dade County Elections Department in Miami

    Strategist Jim Messina says both the Harris and Trump campaigns believe the data indicates they're going to win.

    Messina, who ran Obama's re-election campaign in 2012, says he hasn't seen this kind of mismatch in data since 2012. "So I think it's going to be really close," he tells our colleagues on Radio 4's Today programme.

    He says more than 50% of early voters are women: "That is a historic number that shows you just how enthusiastic women are. And if I'm on the Harris campaign, that number gives me great confidence."

    For Trump, early voting shows Republicans are voting in greater numbers than Democrats. The former president's getting a historic number of young male voters who are traditionally Democrat, Messina says.

    This year has also seen the "largest gender gap in the history of American politics," he goes on, with women voting for Kamala Harris and men voting for Donald Trump. He believes it could be the determining factor.

    Both sides have told him undecided voters are going for Harris, he adds.

  12. Whoever wins, the result of this election will be historicpublished at 09:35 Greenwich Mean Time 4 November

    Azadeh Moshiri
    Reporting from Washington DC

    We throw the word 'historic' around a lot during elections, but this one really is without precedent.

    If Kamala Harris wins, she'll enter the White House as not just the first female US president, but the first black woman and Asian American president too.

    And for Donald Trump, he could be the first president since the 19th century to win having lost a re-election bid, and the first of a major party with a criminal conviction.

    Plus let's consider what it took for us to get to this point - assassination attempts on Trump and President Joe Biden forced out the race.

  13. When will we know who's won?published at 09:17 Greenwich Mean Time 4 November

    Polls close on Tuesday evening, but the chances are we may not know who of Donald Trump or Kamala Harris has won for days afterwards if the election is close.

    National and swing state polls have tightened as tomorrow draws closer, so there could be very narrow margins of victory in several places, which may require votes to be recounted.

    It's also possible that some results may come in more slowly this year due to changes in how individual states - including all seven swing states that will ultimately decide the race - have administered their elections since 2020.

    On the other hand, vote-counting has been sped up in places like Michigan, and far fewer votes will be cast by mail this time than in the last election, which was held during the Covid pandemic.

    In 2020, the election took place on Tuesday 3 November but US TV networks did not declare Joe Biden the winner until late in the morning on Saturday 7 November.

    The president-elect will be inaugurated on Monday 20 January 2025, on the grounds of the Capitol complex - the 60th presidential inauguration in US history. So while we don't know exactly when the result will be announced, we do know when we'll see the next president sworn in.

    Joe Biden raises his hand with the other on a bible as he's sworn in as president in 2021, standing beside his wife Jill BidenImage source, Reuters
    Image caption,

    Biden's inauguration fell on 20 January 2021, two weeks after pro-Trump rioters stormed the US Capitol

  14. Analysis

    Trump's team seem confident - but they may be preparing for election fraud claimspublished at 08:29 Greenwich Mean Time 4 November

    Katty Kay
    US special correspondent

    Campaigns on all sides often project the message they want people to believe, rather than the truth.

    At this moment, the Trump campaign is expressing high levels of confidence. People around Donald Trump have told me in recent weeks that the former president will win six of the seven key battleground states.

    They may possess some private internal data that informs their bullishness - or their optimism could be a tactic to hedge against a possible loss.

    By loudly and publicly claiming that they expect to win big all across the country, Trump and his allies may be trying to soften the ground for claims of fraud if the election doesn’t go their way.

    As we’ve reported, the US is facing a whirlwind of misinformation aimed at sowing distrust ahead of the election. Trump himself has already claimed without evidence that there is widespread fraud in the key swing state of Pennsylvania.

  15. Watch: Trump campaign seizes on death of Instagram-famous squirrelpublished at 07:59 Greenwich Mean Time 4 November

    Away from swing states, Trump's campaign has been making an Instagram-famous pet squirrel who was euthanised by New York wildlife officials a talking point.

    JD Vance, the former president's running mate, claimed over the weekend that Peanut the squirrel's death was proof the US government "doesn't want [people] to have pets".

    Officials from the Department of Environmental Conservation say they tried to take Peanut into their care after they were notified the pet was in a potentially unsafe housing arrangement, and that the decision to put Peanut down came after he bit an official involved in the seizure.

    Campaigning in Sanford, North Carolina, Vance said Trump was "fired up" about Squirrel’s death. You can watch that here:

    Media caption,

    Vance says Trump 'fired up' about Peanut the squirrel controversy

  16. 'Swing' and 'battleground' states explainedpublished at 07:26 Greenwich Mean Time 4 November

    The terms 'swing state' and 'battleground state' are used a lot during US election coverage - including by us - so here's a reminder of what they mean, and why these places are so important.

    There are 50 states in the US but because most of them nearly always vote for the same party, in reality there are just a handful where both candidates stand a chance of winning. These are the places where the election will be won and lost and are known as battleground states or swing states.

    Right now the leads in the swing states are so small that it's impossible to know who is really ahead from looking at the polling averages - but below is a look at the latest figures.

    • Important to remember: Polls are designed to broadly explain how the public feels about a candidate or an issue, not predict the result of an election. Also, individual polls used to create these averages have a margin of error of around three to four percentage points, so either candidate could be doing better or worse than the numbers currently suggest.
    Graph showing the latest polling data in swing states - they suggest Trump is ahead in Pennsylvania, Nevada, North Carolina, Georgia and Arizona; Kamala Harris is ahead in Michigan and Wisconsin.
  17. What are Harris and Trump up to today?published at 07:16 Greenwich Mean Time 4 November

    For Americans who haven't yet voted, an important decision lies ahead. And with less than 24 hours until election day, here’s how Kamala Harris and Donald Trump hope to influence anyone still undecided.

    Harris is due in the swing state of Pennsylvania, where she’ll be holding rallies in Allentown, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. She and her presidential opponent have spent a lot of time in the state in the last few weeks.

    Meanwhile, Trump will tour three different battlegrounds today - making appearances in North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Michigan.

    We'll bring you updates from those campaign stops when they happen, but with the time difference that won't be for quite a while yet as a lot of the US is currently asleep.

  18. The papers: Final campaign pushes and accusation of a 'fake poll'published at 06:56 Greenwich Mean Time 4 November

    BBC News is one of many British media organisations keeping a watchful eye on the the US election. And as Donald Trump and Kamala Harris's campaigns enter their final push, here's how some of the newspapers in the UK are covering them:

    Guardian front page with headline: "Harris and trump make final push in swing states".
    Image caption,

    The Guardian leads on pushes by both Donald Trump and Kamala Harris to secure votes in Pennsylvania - which controls 19 electoral college votes. The paper carries a final New York Times/Siena College poll of the vital swing state, which suggests neither candidate has a lead in any of the other battleground but that Trump has made progress in Pennsylvania in recent weeks

    Daily Telegraph front page with headline "Trump attacks 'fake poll' after late Harris surge'
    Image caption,

    Trump has claimed a poll of Iowa showing him behind in he state is "fake", amid speculation of a surge of support for Harris in the midwestern state and beyond, the Daily Telegraph reports. He accused the media of being corrupt and suggested there was an effort by pollsters to "make the polls sing", the paper says, as well as attacking the elector process as being allegedly open to fraud

    the I front page headline: "Britons hope for Harris win - but most think Trump will be US president"
    Image caption,

    The i has taken a more UK-focused approach to its election coverage, reporting on its own poll that most people in Britain would prefer Harris to win - but believe Trump will come out on top tomorrow. Of those surveyed, 47% believe the Democrat candidate winning would be better for the UK compared to 27% for the Republican, the paper reports

  19. Key moments from the weekendpublished at 06:39 Greenwich Mean Time 4 November

    Sam Hancock
    Live page editor

    On Sunday Kamala Harris spoke in Michigan while Donald Trump addressed a rally in GeorgiaImage source, Reuters

    From campaign rallies to surprise appearances on Saturday Night Live (SNL) - and everything in between - you'd be forgiven for missing key US election moments over the weekend. Here's a quick round-up to bring you up to speed:

    • Live on Saturday night, from New York City, Kamala Harris made a surprise appearance alongside comedian Maya Rudolph on the live comedy sketch show SNL - they performed a scripted exchange featuring puns on Harris's first name, Kamala, including "keep calm-ala" and "carry on-ala"
    • The next day, both Harris and Donald Trump toured key states before polls officially open on Tuesday - although more than 75 million people have already voted
    • Harris wrapped a final rally in the pivotal state of Michigan, where she told a crowd "we have momentum" - the Democratic nominee didn't mention Trump's name once as she urged supporters to get out, vote and find others to vote
    • Meanwhile, Republican nominee Trump made a pitch in Georgia where he called Democrats a "demonic party", ridiculed President Joe Biden and complained about the price of apples
    • Visiting Pennsylvania - the swing state with the biggest number of electoral college votes up for grabs - Trump complained that not all states require voters to show identification; he suggested this could only be to allow cheating

    With just one more full day of campaigning left, we'll bring you all the action as it unfolds plus the latest analysis and handy explainers, so stay with us.

  20. Hello from DC, where this extraordinary race is in its final hourspublished at 06:15 Greenwich Mean Time 4 November

    Jon Kay
    BBC Breakfast presenter, in Washington DC

    Jon Kay in Washington with the Washington monument in the background

    Put the coffee on! BBC Breakfast has landed in Washington DC - and the time difference is a bit of a killer.

    We go on air at 06:00 GMT every day, which is 01:00 here. But we’ll have plenty to keep us busy as we broadcast through the night, overlooking the White House.

    Pollsters, pundits, and politicians will join us to explain why the result of this election is so important - and so very hard to predict. We’ll also hear from voters in those crucial swing-states everyone’s talking about.

    I’ve just spent a couple of days filming in the must-win state Pennsylvania, where voters told me they’re exhausted and anxious as the US enters the last hours of this extraordinary race.

    On Wednesday morning, I’ll be in the studio with the BBC’s North America anchors Sumi Somaskanda and Caitriona Perry for a special edition of BBC Breakfast as the results come in.