Former President Trump and Vice President Harris are shadowing one another across the battleground states with five days to go before the polls close on the 2024 election.
In focus for both campaigns this week: Nevada, which traditionally breaks for the Democratic nominee, and Wisconsin, which was the most competitive "Blue Wall" state in 2020.
- Trump and Harris both campaigned Wednesday night in Wisconsin. They'll both return Friday for rallies in Milwaukee.
- Trump and Harris are in Nevada on Thursday. Harris has stops planned in Reno this evening and Las Vegas just after midnight on the East Coast, while Trump campaigns in Henderson, the second largest city in the state.
- Harris is trying to avoid becoming the first Democratic nominee in 20 years to lose Nevada, which has become more competitive in recent elections. Election analysts generally don't read too much into early voting returns, but Jon Ralston at the Nevada Independent notes this morning that the GOP is "looking stronger than ever at this point in an election" and holds a "substantial ballot lead."
- Trump is trying to win for a second time in three elections in Wisconsin. Trump carried the Badger State by less than 1 point in 2016. President Biden won it back by less than 1 point in 2020.
While Harris appears poised to stick to the seven swing states for the final days of the campaign, Trump will hold rallies in traditionally blue states.
- Trump campaigned in Albuquerque, N.M., on Thursday, where he told the crowd the visit is "good for my credentials with the Hispanic or Latino community."
- He'll travel Saturday to Salem, Va.
Does the Trump campaign believe those states are truly in play?
"Donald Trump is playing offense right now," Republican National Committee (RNC) Chair Michael Watley told NewsNation's Blake Burman. "We are seeing numbers. We are seeing indicators that show us that those states may be in play."
Election analysts, meanwhile, say they have no idea who will win the race.
Via CNN polling guru Harry Enten: "This remains the closest presidential election I've ever seen... I have no idea who is going to win. I haven't had an idea of who is going to win. The polls are ridiculously close and have been for a while."
The Trump and Harris campaigns are seizing on every misstep to try to squeeze additional votes out of a divided electorate.
- Trump rode around in a garbage truck and conducted his rally in a reflective vest on Wednesday to draw attention to Biden's disparaging remarks about his supporters.
- A GOP lawmaker will introduce a resolution condemning Biden's "garbage" remarks.
- Harris seized on remarks Trump made at his Wednesday rally, saying he'd protect women whether they "like it or not." "It actually is, I think, very offensive to women in terms of not understanding their agency, their authority, their right and their ability to make decisions about their own lives, including their own bodies," Harris told reporters. "And this is just the latest on a series of reveals by the former president on how he thinks about women and their agency."
- Harris is stepping up her outreach to Latinos amid the fallout from Trump's Madison Square Garden rally.
Both campaigns are striking optimistic tones in public, while bracing for a potential loss behind the scenes.
- The Hill's Brett Samuels reports that Trump is already making unfounded claims of voter fraud in Pennsylvania: "Trump is sowing doubt about the election results in Pennsylvania less than one week before Election Day, making explosive and misleading claims about fraud in the commonwealth."
- The Republican Secretary of State in Georgia, Brad Raffensperger, wrote an op-ed on Thursday in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution explaining why Georgia's elections are secure. Georgia was ground zero for Trump's claims about the election being stolen in 2020.
- The Hill's Amie Parnes reports that Democrats are already backbiting over who will bear responsibility should Harris lose: "While some Democrats say they are increasingly hopeful that Harris will win, others have expressed mounting frustration about a string of factors that have plagued the campaign from the outset."
💡 Perspectives:
The Liberal Patriot: The demographics of a Trump victory — or defeat.
The Hill: Harris's closing message must separate her vision from Biden's.
The Hill: Could 2024 be a replay of 1980?
The New York Times: Where will the blame go?
USA Today: Biden continues Dems' insulting rhetoric.
MSNBC: The GOP freakout over Biden's gaffe is absurd.
Slate: Stein could play spoiler for Dems.
The Wall Street Journal: Three types of voters will decide 2024.
The New Republic: The battle for the most important county in the country.
Intelligencer: Dems used to run on education. What happened?
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