Republican Senate candidate Dr Mehmet Oz takes the stage in Latrobe for a short speech where he vows to represent the people of Pennsylvania.

Oz urged voters to start their day tomorrow by calling friends and asking if they’re happy with the direction of the country.

“If they say yes - take their keys. They should not be driving in that condition,” Oz joked before vowing to bring change to Washington if elected.

Katty Kay
US special correspondent

I spent the day with Republicans in Virginia.

Governor Glen Youngkin is an impressive political campaigner and a useful surrogate for Republican candidates like Yesli Vega, who’s running for Congress.

Interestingly neither of them mentioned former President Donald Trump. I asked Vega why she didn’t mention him in her stump speech and whether she thinks Trump is a hindrance to her campaign - she only said that it’s her name on the ticket so she is only talking about what she’d do for Virginians.

Mike Wendling
US disinformation reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Deep staff cuts at Twitter have experts worried about the spread of false election rumours and misleading information.

The company’s head of safety and integrity insists that most front-line content moderators aren't among the thousands affected.

But the Washington Post and other outlets , externalreport that employees responsible for monitoring election disinformation are among those who have been sacked.

On the platform itself, the discussion about misinformation is active, partisan and polarised. Today, commentators on the left are sounding the alarm over the cuts, while some of the loudest conservative activists are cheering - claiming that moderation is censorship.

Twitter is nowhere near the size of Facebook or TikTok, but has outsized influence owing to its user base of news junkies. Rumours – including false ones – can gain instant traction.

It’s where false claims about voting fraud got their start in 2020, a theme that has been picked up by hundreds of Republican candidates.

We’ve been investigating one group of candidates who not only believe false election fraud claims – they’re actively trying to take control of the election process in several swing states.

You can read more about the conspiratorial America First SOS coalition here.

Trump is rattling through many of the Republicans' main criticisms of Biden's presidency:

• With the holidays approaching, Trump notes how rising prices at grocery stores will hurt many Americans as they shop for holiday meals. He points out that inflation and supply chain issues are making holiday staples like turkey and ham more expensive
• He also lashes out Biden's troop withdrawl from Afghanistan calling it "the greatest humiliation this country has ever seen"

He is then joined on stage by Republican Doug Mastriano who is standing for governor. He gives a brief speech of his own.

Trump has gone on to accuse Democrats of orchastrating his ongoing legal battles from Washington, DC.

He specifically attacked New York Attorney General Leticia James over her civil lawsuit that seeks to bar Trump and his family from operating businesses in the state. James "only spends her time going after Trump," he said. He went on to address the FBI's raid on Mar-a-Lago calling it a huge "violation of my Fourth Amendment rights".

"What they did is so terrible it's amazing. It's really never happened to a president before," he said. "They think they're making us weaker but they're making us stronger and united."

Donald Trump has again been teasing the possibility of a presidential run in 2024.

While noting the number of media outlets attending the rally, Trump said: "They must think I'm going to announce for president tonight, that's a lot of people!"

In a rallying cry for Republicans to vote in at the start of his speech, he said: "We're going to win in '22. We're going to win in '24. We're taking back that beautiful House."

He later touted polls from unverified companies that showed him ahead in the 2024 election against Joe Biden.

On Thursday night, at a rally in Sioux City, Iowa, Trump told a cheering crowd that "in order to make our country successful, and safe and glorious" he would "very, very, very probably do it again... very soon. Get ready."

Speaking in Pennsylvania, Trump has continued to push false claims that the 2020 election was stolen.

He made the comments while lamenting the recent arrest of two leaders of an organisation called True the Vote, that falsely claims that the election is stolen.

"We want voter ID, we want paper votes," Trump said as he called for tighter restrictions on voting rights.

"The election was rigged and stolen -- it's a shame" Trump said.

Trump also urged his supporters to vote in-person instead of voting by mail because "it's harder to cheat".

Numerous national and state-level studies have shown that although there have been isolated cases, electoral fraud is very rare.

Former President Donald Trump has taken the stage tonight to raucus chants of “USA!” in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, wearing a signature MAGA hat and red tie.

“We’re going up and down the ballot like they’ve never seen before and we’re going to end crazy Nancy Pelosi’s political career once and for all ” the 45th President said. Pelosi's husband is slowly recovering from a brutal attack in his home last week.

He said: “There’s only one choice - if you support the decline and fall of America then you must vote for the radical Democrats. If you want to stop the destruction of our country then you must vote Republican in a giant red wave.”

Image source, EPA

Image source, Getty Images

As we've been reporting, Pennsylvania features one of the most important Senate races in this midterm election. But who exactly are the two candidates vying for the state's coveted seat?

Mehmet Oz - widely known as Dr Oz - is the Republican candidate. He is a celebrity TV heart surgeon who was best known for his appearances on the Oprah Winfrey Show.

He suffered a blow to his campaign on Friday when Winfrey said she would vote for his rival if she lived in Pennsylvania.

Oz would be the nation's first Muslim senator if elected.

His political patron is former President Donald Trump. Oz has capitalised on that fact that his opponent is recovering from a stroke, repeatedly challenging him to public debates.

On the hot topic of abortion, Oz said the decision should be left up to a "woman, doctor and local political leaders".

It's an answer that may concern the majority of voters who favour protecting the right to an abortion.

John Fetterman, 53, is the Democratic candidate.

The tattooed 6ft 8in (2m) left-wing Democrat is a Harvard graduate turned small town mayor who usually shuns suits in favour of shorts and a hoodie.

Fetterman suffered a stroke a few months ago that required him to use closed-captioning technology to answer questions.

For months after his stroke, Fetterman stayed out of the public eye, instead relying on television adverts and an aggressive social media campaign to build a polling lead over his rival Dr Oz.

But pressure grew for him to agree to a televised public debate as his lead over Dr Oz narrowed.

The two finally faced off last month. In several instances, Fetterman was unable to engage in the kind of quick, nimble replies and verbal sparring that typifies American political debates.

Image source, Getty Images

Supporters burst into cheers just now as former President Donald Trump's plane touched down in Latrobe, Pennslyvania.

The 45th president of the United States landed moments after his predecessor, Barack Obama, finished rallying Democrats across the state in Philadelphia.

Trump is going to be speaking at a campaign event with Republican candidate for Senate, Mehmet Oz.

As a reminder, Pennslyvania could be critical in deciding who controls Congress this election -- which is why both parties have deployed their political heavywieghts to the state just days before election day.

Wrapping up his speech, Obama admitted that he can get discouraged by the state of politics today, but added: "We can be better".

He urged voters to reject cynicism and polarisation when they had to the polls Tuesday and instead vote for values like "honesty" and "fairness".

"I believe things will be okay. But I also know that things won’t be okay on their own -- they’ll be okay if we make the effort... not just on Election Day but every day in between."

He closed by telling voters: "Let's get to work".

Obama is using his speech to dissect the issues that matter to voters.

He admits that inflation has been a painful consequence of the pandemic, and that it has been "compounded by the war in Ukraine" and slow supply chains.

"It's frustrating and scary especially if you're on a fixed income -- I get it," the former president says. "But the question is, who's actually going to do something about it?" Obama accused Republicans of prioritising corportions and tax cuts for the wealthy instead of working class families in states like Pennsylvania.

"Who do you think knows more about budgets and having to pay the bills - John Fetterman or Dr Oz?"

He goes on to say that the right for women to choose what happens to their bodies, and the fidelity of democracy itself are also on the ballot - and draws a contrast between Republicans and the Democrats on the ticket in Pennsylvania.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

The former president is putting on a campaign performance familiar to those who have seen him over the years, deploying lively, measured persuasion to urge Americans to get to the ballot box.

Hitting out at the opposing party, he accused Republicans of playing on fears to keep Americans from voting.

Those fears have a "very slim relationship with reality," Obama says, but he admitted the strategy works and has helped Republicans win in past midterm elections.

Amid the boos, he brings back a signature campaign line: "Don't boo, vote!"

"They can't hear you boo, but they'll hear you vote," he says.

"If you ignore the fear-mongering, if you ignore the cynicism, if you vote, then we will keep this country moving forward."

An explosion of cheers greeted former President Barack Obama as he took the stage in Pennsylvania. The 44th President of the United States didn't mince words about what's at stake in Tuesday's election.

"Truth and facts and logic and reason and basic decency are on the ballot. Democracy itself is on the ballot — the stakes are high," he said.

He also paused for a history lesson to explain why midterms are harder on the incumbent party in the White House.

"When I was president I got my butt whooped in midterm election," he said. "I'm not big on looking backwards - but sometimes I can't help but imagine what it would've been like if enough people had turned out to vote in these elections."

Image source, Getty Images

Democratic Senate candidate John Fetterman had a commanding lead in Pennsylvania until he suffered a stroke a few months ago that required him to use closed captioning technology to answer questions.

Speaking tonight, he joked the worst thing for a man recovering from a stroke was to go on stage before Barack Obama.

In one of his final speeches to Pennsylvania voters, Fetterman admitted his stroke may have set him back, but he insisted it hadn't knocked him out.

"Sometimes I’m going to miss some words. I might mush two words together but I’ll always make sure I make the right votes in DC," Fetterman said to loud cheers.

He later promised to vote to expand the same kind of healthcare that saved his life to all Americans.

Sarah Smith
North America Editor reporting from Philadelphia

The double act of Presidents Biden and Obama drew a huge crowd in north Philadelphia. I talked to some of the people standing in a queue that stretched several blocks down the street.

Steve Phillips said it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see two presidents in one day, and he hoped it would get people out to vote, regardless of which party they supported.

Some of the crowd admitted it was really Barack Obama they had come to see, and they might not have turned up if Joe Biden had been here alone.

Denise Garfield told me that she really doesn’t want to see Democrats lose control of Congress because “our democracy is at stake, it truly is".

"The chaos! I don't have the words for how bad I think it will be for America and for the world.”

Everyone was keenly aware that how Pennsylvania votes could make all the difference in this election.

Stephanie Ryan said that how Pennsylvania votes matters “because women matter. Because our rights matter. Because black lives matter, foreign lives matter - everyone's lives matter!"

Biden wrapped up his speech by vowing to push for a ban on assault weapons and veto any effort by Republicans to pass a national ban on abortion.

"Overturning Roe wasn’t the end for them, it was just the beginning", he said. He promised that if voters elected Democrat candidate John Fetterman to the Senate - and protected the Democrats' majority in Congress - his party would "restore the right to choose in this country by codifying Roe v. Wade and make it the law of the land".

In his closing comments, he said Tuesday's midterm elections would be a "defining moment for the nation" and urged supporters to vote.

"Here in Philadelphia, a place that defines the soul of America, today we face an inflection point," he said.

"There's no quit in John Fetterman, there's no quit in Pennsylvania, there's no quit in the United States of America."

Next on stage was Josh Shapiro, the Democrats' candidate for Pennsylvania governor. He attacked his opponent Doug Mastriano - a prominent pedlar of conspiracies that the 2020 US election was stolen from Donald Trump.

Biden has next attacked what he says is the Republican plan to "gut" healthcare support, including getting rid of the Affordable Care Act (known as Obamacare) and Medicare, the healthcare plan that covers most seniors in the United States.

"No matter how hard they try to get rid of Obamacare, I'm never going to let it happen -- and Fetterman won't let it happen either," Biden said, referring to the Democrat senatorial candidate.

He said Fetterman would "protect social security and medicare and gaurantee that veterans are always cared for".

"It's good to be home! It's good to be with family", Biden says to a cheering crowd in his home state.

President Biden starts his speech by taking a swipe against Donald Trump and "MAGA Republicans", and toughting his record on job creation compared to the former president.

He urges voters to remember that "character and courage are on the ballot" on Tuesday.

Image source, Reuters