US Election 2024 live: Elon Musk references infamous 'sink' photo as he declares win for Trump

As it stands: Trump close to 270 votes on 247, as Harris hopes for victory route via swing states

As I hand over to my colleague Harry Fletcher to take you through Wednesday, let's look at where we're at.

Of the seven swing states - Georgia, North Carolina, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Arizona and Wisconsin - Georgia and North Carolina have been called for Trump.

The current standing is 210-247 for Trump, but the Democrats could still win if they take a number of swing states.

Keep following our live blog as Trump is expected to address crowds in Florida shortly...

Kamala Harris won't be speaking this evening

An announcement was made that the Democrat candidate would be speaking tomorrow.

Meanwhile, it's expected Donald Trump will speak in Florida shortly.

Elon Musk references infamous 'sink' photo as he declares win for Trump

Elon Musk is convinced it's a win for Donald Trump this evening, and has referenced the infamous moment when he entered Twitter HQ with a sink, solely to make the joke, "let that sinl in">

This time, however, he's edited himself into the Oval Office of the White House.

Harris backers share memes as they cling on to possible route to Democrat win 'for dear life'

Is it all over for Kamala Harris and the Democrats? Journalist David Shuster has pointed to one way in which they could still secure the magic 270 electoral college votes required to win the presidency.

Under his calculations, while North Carolina and Georgia could be lost to Trump, this "would be irrelevant" if Harris wins the four swing states of Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Arizona.

With Harris currently on 209 votes, these four states would bring in 55 votes (10 votes, 15 votes, 19 votes and 11 votes respectively), taking Harris to 264 votes.

Minnesota is considered a state which will likely go to the Democrats given its victories in 2016 and 2020, which would give Harris another 10 votes and take her past the 270 target with 274 electoral college votes.

Shuster's final figure is 281 electoral votes, and the possibility that Harris could still win is being held onto incredibly tightly by some social media users.

"Pray you're right," replied one.

Another commented: "Lighting every candle in my f***ing house."

"I'm going to hold onto this for dear life," said a third.

A fourth joked: "Clinging onto this tweet like the door at the end of Titanic."

Rory Stewart ridiculed over prediction Kamala Harris will 'win comfortably'

With Donald Trump now on 230 electoral college votes, predictions of a Harris win are now being ridiculed buy social media users - including a claim by former Tory politician and Rest is Politics co-host Rory Stewart.

A day before the US election, Stewart expressed his view that Harris would "win comfortably", due to issues such as a "solid" Biden administration and Trump losing ground since 2016.

However, with the current picture pointing to a Trump win or a tight victory for Harris, Stewart is now facing criticism.

"Rory Stewart is proof of how far you can get by being confident and having a posh British accent," tweeted one.

Responding to another tweet from Stewart predicting a Harris win, former GB News host Andrew Neil posted: "Evening Rory..."

The Trump rallies: The response to a California heckler

We've already talked about Trump's remarks about being a 'protector' of women, but comments made in California last month called that into question when he responded to a heckler by saying she would get the "hell knocked out of her" by her own mother.

As it stands: A jump for Harris as Democrats now on 179 votes compared to Republicans' 214 votes

With both California and Washington called for Harris by AP, the some 110 votes the Democrat previously had has now surged to 179 votes.

The Trump rallies: Undermining himself on the subject of teleprompters

Back to our recaps of Trump rallies now and he's had a number of awkward moments involving teleprompters, starting with a speech in Colorado in October where he gloated about not needing one, only to be filmed moving a sign out of the way of the tech hours later in Nevada.

Oops.

Polls close in big electoral college state California

We've talked a fair bit about the 54 electoral college votes from California - well, polls have closed there and the Associated Press has called it for Kamala Harris, in a boost for the Democrats.

Polls have also closed in Washington, where 12 electoral college votes are up for grabs.

As it stands: Trump's electoral college votes surpass 200

Republican candidate Donald Trump is edging ever closer to the magic number of 270 needed to win the presidency, as he's now passed more than 200 votes.

The current numbers are 210-113 to Trump, but the biggest state of California with its more than 50 votes is yet to be called, and there's a total of 215 electoral college votes still up for grabs...

Twitter/X owner and staunch Trump supporter Elon Musk seems pretty convinced it's a winning night for the Republicans, as in the last half hour he's tweeted: "Game, set and match."

Democrats call on Harris backers to 'sit tight' and have 'patience' amid early Trump lead

Despite Donald Trump currently enjoying a lead of some 80 electoral college votes over Kamala Harris (it's 112-198), Democrats and Harris supporters are calling on each other to have 'patience' and are providing reassurance at this early stage.

Journalist David Shuster has tweeted that the early Republican lead is known as the "red mirage", while another user called on Harris backers to "sit tight" amid what they described as a "Democratic panic attack".

The state with the biggest amount of electoral votes is California with 54 votes, and the Democrats have secured massive majorities in recent elections, meaning it's been considered a safe seat for Harris.

As it stands: Harris on 109 votes compared to Trump's 198

States called for Harris include New York (28 electoral college votes), Illinois (19 votes) and New Jersey (14 votes).

Meanwhile Texas and its whopping 40 electoral college votes has been called for Trump, along with the 30 votes from Florida and the 17 from Ohio.

As it stands, Harris is on 109 votes, and Trump is on 198.

And California is still yet to be called, which comes with the largest amount of electoral college votes: a massive 54 votes.

The Trump rallies: Joking about the Pennsylvania victim

In the aftermath of the first assassination attempt on Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania in July, which saw 50-year-old Corey Comperatore killed while protecting his family, The Guardian published details of a 12-minute recording from 10 August in which is reported to have joked about a meeting with Comperatore's widow Helen.

He reportedly told attendees at a dinner in Colorado: "So they're going to get millions of dollars but the woman, the wife, this beautiful woman, I handed her the cheque - we handed her the cheque - and she said, 'this is so nice, and I appreciate it, but I'd much rather have my husband'.

"Now, I know some of the women in this room wouldn't say the same.

"I know at least four couples. There are four couples, Governor [Abbott], that I know and you're not one of them. At least four couples here would have been thrilled, actually."

Polls close in swing state of Nevada...

As well as Montana and Utah.

Nevada has six electoral votes up for grabs.

The Trump rallies: Raw milk

We promise the late-night delirium hasn't kicked in, as at the start of October, a speaker at a Trump rally in Pennsylvania - a QAnon conspiracy theorist by the name of Scott Presler - took to the stage to declare "we will protect your raw milk".

It concerns a conspiracy theory around US Food and Drugs Administration warnings about consuming raw milk - which can carry "dangerous germs such as salmonella, E.coli ... and others that cause foodborne illness" - which conservatives believe is an example of government overrach.

The Trump rallies: The fly tangent

Speaking of Wisconsin, he went on a bizarre tangent during his rally in the state on 28 September, when he started talking about a fly buzzing around near his lectern.

Yes, really.

The Trump rallies: A 'protector' of women

With Harris making women's rights and reproductive rights a key part of her election campaign, Trump told supporters in Pennsylvania in late September that he would be a "protector" for women if he secured a second term as president.

He said: "I am your protector. I want to be your protector. As president, I have to be your protector.”

The Republican - who appointed justices to the Supreme Court who overturned Roe v Wade - doubled down on these comments in Wisconsin last week, when he said he would "protect" women "whether the women like it or not".

How is it looking at the moment?

Our colleagues over at The Independent have some great infographics available on their site, including a colourful interactive map of the USA, and that crucial bar where Harris and Trump are inching to the centre and the magic 270 electoral college votes.

As it stands, based on states that have been called, the Democrats have 99 electoral college votes, while Trump has 177 votes.

There are key swing states yet to be called, though...

The Trump rallies: Operations in schools

As we wait for results to come through, let's recap the many Trump rallies which made headlines over the course of the US election campaign, starting with comments in Wisconsin back in September when, after a school shooting in Georgia left four people dead, the Republican used the tragedy to make a point about gender-affirming surgery.

"Can you imagine you’re a parent, and your son leaves the house and you say, ‘Jimmy, I love you so much, go have a good day in school’, and your son comes back with a brutal operation," he tol the crowd.

What is the Trump 'weave'?

A sore spot for Donald Trump throughout the US election campaign has been his crowd sizes, insisting people do not leave his rallies early (even as someone did just that behind him).

But according to the Republican candidate himself, all the rambling is actually part of the "most brilliant thing" academics have ever seen, dubbed "the weave".

"When I do the weave... you know what the weave is?

"I'll talk about nine different things and they all come back brilliantly together," he explained, during a rally in Pennsylvania back in September.

And there was one endorsement Donald Trump just couldn’t ‘shake off’...

One name we didn’t mention above was Taylor Swift, who came out in support of Kamala Harris and described her as a “steady-handed, gifted leader”.

She also heaped praise on her running mate Tim Walz, noting that he has “been standing up for LGBTQ+ rights, IVF, and a women’s right to her own body for decades”.

Trump, ever mature in the face of criticism, responded with an all-caps Truth Social post in which he exclaimed: “I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT!”

The Harris campaign - which, as previous updates in this live blog have shown - loves to tap into cultural trends as part of their messaging, jumped at the chance to make a number of Swiftie references in response.

28, to be exact.

In a press release titled “Trump’s Bad Week (Taylor’s Version)", they wrote: “We’re pretty sure it’s Safe (& Sound) to say Donald Trump’s week has him Down Bad. Mr Not-at-all-Fine [a play on the title of Swift’s Vault track ‘Mr Perfectly Fine’] has spent this week working through his feelings, whining about his Champagne Problems…”

The celebrities endorsing Trump, Harris and none of the above

For Harris-Walz, supporters include: Eminem, Cardi B, Beyonce, the cast of The Avengers, Dick Cheney, Liz Cheney, George Bush’s daughter Barbara, Jennifer Lopez, Bruce Springsteen, LeBron James, Stevie Wonder and Billie Elish.

For Trump-Vance: Dr Phil, Elon Musk, Jake Paul, Hulk Hogan and Kid Rock.

Climate activist Greta Thunberg released a statement endorsing neither candidate, instead saying both had “blood on their hands” in relation to the ongoing violence in Palestine, while “Hot To Go” singer Chappell Roan made clear she won’t be voting for Trump, but won’t go as far as to endorse Harris.

Wait, it isn’t just Trump and Harris running?

Nope. Green Party candidate Jill Stein is also running, as is philosopher and activist Dr Cornel West.

The Democrats have recently put out attack ads on third-party candidates, warning that a vote for them is a vote for their main opponent, Donald Trump.

Indeed, in comments used by the Dems to make their point, Trump said at a rally in Pennsylvania in June that he liked both West and Stein because they “take 100 per cent”.

And in one of the silliest options facing US voters, there’s a man who’s running for president who has legally changed his name to Literally Anybody Else.

We don’t think we need to tell you what his main political argument is…

The second assassination attempt on Donald Trump

And this wasn’t the only attempt made on Trump’s life in the run-up to the election, as in September, US Secret Service agents spotted a muzzle of an AK-style rifle poking out through the bushes near the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida.

Ryan Routh, 58, was reportedly arrested after fleeing the scene.

According to Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw, a government agent fired at the bushes and the gunman dropped the rifle and drove away in an SUV.

The firearm was left behind along with two backpacks, a scope and a GoPro camera.

Marjorie Taylor Greene: Trump is 'not radical'

Controversial Republican politician Marjorie Taylor Greene has claimed Donald Trump is "not radical" - despite pledging a 'mass deportation" if he secures a second term and his 2020 defeat triggering an insurrection.

Greene made the comments during an appearance on Tucker Carlson's livestream, where she also slammed a plea from former president Barack Obama to "respect" and "thank" election workers.

"I'm sorry, we're not going to be respectful," she said.

The first assassination attempt on Donald Trump

Before we recap the many - and we mean many - headline-grabbing comments made by Donald Trump at his rallies, we have to talk about one of the biggest and most shocking moments during the election campaign: when the Republican survived an assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania on 13 July thanks to a split-second action he made while speaking.

By turning his head to the right, a bullet fired by gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks - who was shot dead by secret service agents - “pierced the upper part of [his] right ear”.

The former president was then seen placing a hand to his ear before taking cover as officials swarmed the stage to protect the politician. He was then seen raising a fist in the air and shouting “fight” to supporters as he was carried away to a vehicle.

One audience member was killed in the incident, while two others were injured.

The Vance gaffes: Trying - and failing - to throw shade at Taylor Swift

We’re looking back at September now, and if you thought that month was any better for Vance, then you’ve got another think coming, as he did the rather silly thing of trying to make a dig at the successful pop star that is Taylor Swift.

He told Fox and Friends: “I don’t think most Americans - whether they like her music, or [are] fans of hers or not - are going to be influenced by a billionaire celebrity who I think is fundamentally disconnected from the interests and the problems of most Americans.

“When grocery prices go up 20 per cent, it hurts most Americans. It doesn’t hurt Taylor Swift. When housing prices become unaffordable, it doesn’t affect Taylor Swift or any other billionaire.”

The only problem is, is that Trump - his running mate - is also a billionaire celebrity.

Oops.

A big list of poll closures just now...

Polls have closed in:

• Alabama
• Connecticut
• District of Columbia
• Delaware
• Florida
• Illinois
• Maine
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• Mississippi
• Missouri
• New Hampshire
• New Jersey
• Oklahoma
• Pennsylvania
• Rhode Island
• Tennessee

The Vance gaffes: Using a Trump supporter to mock Kamala Harris

This is the last gaffe from August we covered, we promise, and it involved Vance thinking it was a good idea to use a clip of a viral moment from a Miss Teen USA pageant in 2007 to ridicule Harris’ first interview as a presidential candidate following the Democratic National Convention.

The problem? Said clip, of a contestant struggling to give a coherent answer to a question about why a fifth of Americans couldn’t identify the US on a map of the world, is also of Trump supporter Caite Upton.

Obviously, belittling someone on your side to attack your opponent is hardly the best political move.

And Upton wasn’t happy about it, writing on Twitter/X that “social media and online bullying needs to stop”.

First it was Boris Johnson...

Now Twitter/X users have voiced their disapproval of the BBC interviewing Piers Morgan as part of their election coverage.

Comedian Naomi Cooper tweeted: "Get it together guys, we're starting to look dumber than America!"

The Vance gaffes: The CNN interview

In an appearance on the news channel which resulted in him being branded a “walking blooper reel” online, Vance suffered technical issues as presenter John Berman asked him a question on the issue of abortion rights.

Embarrassing.

The Vance gaffes: Shunning teleprompters only to suggest he very much needs one moments later

Also in August (we told you he made several gaffes while on the campaign trail), Vance told supporters in Pennsylvania he didn’t “need a teleprompter” because he’s “actually got thoughts in my head, unlike Kamala Harris”.

The Vance gaffes: The ‘medieval’ haircut

We’re still in August, by the way, and in addition to engaging in more awkward small-talk with a store worker (this time in a doughnut shop), Vance was roasted for his haircut as people joked that “even his hairdresser hates him”.

More polling centers have closed...

Polls have closed in Ohio, West Virginia, and another crucial swing state: North Carolina.

Brian Cox glares at Boris Johnson on Channel 4 election coverage, delighting internet

Brian Cox - the Succession star, not the physics guy - has delighted those tuning in to Channel 4's America Decides programme, as he was captured glaring and looking pretty disgruntled when fellow panellist Boris Johnson was speaking.

One said it was "exactly what I needed tonight", while another joked it was a "new Gogglebox".

Bernie Sanders re-elected in Vermont

Senator Bernie Sanders has been re-elected to Congress in the state of Vermont, as results start coming in across America.

Republican candidate Mike Braun has won the race for governor in Indiana, with Jim Banks - also Republican - taking the Senate.

In Kentucky, Republicans Thomas Massie and Hall Rogers have won re-election.

AP reports Gus Bilirakis has won re-election in Florida, while Democrat Debbie Wasserman has also won re-election, as a representative.

Results expected in swing state of Georgia at 8pm local time

Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger has said he expects a bulk of results for the state - one of seven so-called 'swing states' - by 8pm local time.

Polls have closed in the state, but it's currently too close to call.

The Vance gaffes: Insulting deli owners

Oh, and when he visited Wisconsin, he asked one deli owner: “You have any food here you really don’t like? We’ll take some and feed it to the journalists on the plane.”

This was soon criticised on social media, with one individual familiar with the store in question actually pointing out that it is an “incredible Italian deli”.

It’s called Tenuta’s, based in Kenosha, if you were curious.

The Vance gaffes: His ‘Swiss cheese’ comments

Later in August, he committed a faux pas when he asked about Swiss cheese while ordering a Philly cheesesteak sandwich - something which didn’t end well when then-senator John Kerry did the same back in 2004.

Awkward.

The Vance gaffes: The alleged drag queen photos

At one point, Vance was asked if his drag queen name is ‘Sofa Loren’ after photos emerged purporting to show him dressed up as a drag queen “while at Yale law school”.

A Republican party spokesperson did not deny that the image was Vance, nor did they deny the authenticity of the photo.

The Vance gaffes: Poor crowd sizes

He also held a rally in Philadelphia at the former ECW Arena (now known as the 2300 Arena), which was the site used by the company Extreme Championship Wrestling between 1993 and 2000.

With Vance’s event reportedly pulling in a crowd of “more than 200”, social media users soon compared that number with past wrestling events held at the venue.

Polls close in the first six states

Polls have closed in Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, South Carolina, Vermont and Virginia.

Georgia is one of the seven key swing states considered to play a big part in determining who will take the White House.

The Vance gaffes: His awkward TikTok launch

And his performance during the vice presidential debate wasn’t the only time when Vance faced ridicule, as he suffered several embarrassing blunders throughout the election campaign period.

Donald Trump makes 'wild allegation' of cheating in key swing state

Donald Trump, who infamously - and baselessly - denied the legitimacy of the 2020 election when he lost, is already putting out claims of "cheating" for the latest US vote.

Taking to his Truth Social platform, Trump said there's been "a lot of talk about massive CHEATING in Philadelphia" with "Law Enforcement coming".

"Philadelphia and Detroit! Heavy Law Enforcement is there," he added in a follow-up post.

Except Larry Krasner, district attorney for Philadelphia, has since rubbished those allegations, writing on Twitter/X that the claim is "unfounded".

"The only talk about massive cheating has come from one of the candidates, Donald J. Trump. There is no factual basis whatsoever within law enforcement to support this wild allegation.

"We have invited complaints and allegations of improprieties all day. If Donald J. Trump has any facts to support his wild allegations, we want them now. Right now. We are not holding our breath," he wrote.

And how about the Walz vs Vance vice-presidential debate?

Well, that was a lot more subdued and respectful, with the pair shaking hands before and after the debate and Vance often agreeing with Walz on a number of issues.

But one of the stand-out moments came when Vance was pressed on whether he would challenge this year’s election results and Walz asked whether his opponent believed Trump lost the 2020 election, which he did.

When Vance opted instead to talk about “the future”, Walz replied that that was a “damning non-answer”.

A reminder of what happened at the Harris vs Trump presidential debate

In contrast to the debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden which marked the beginning of the end for the latter’s campaign for a second consecutive term in the White House, it was the Republican candidate who - in the eyes of many - ended up giving the poorest performance when he went up against Kamala Harris.

He claimed his Democrat opponent wanted to carry out “transgender operations on illegal aliens that are in prison”, said that he had “concepts of a plan” on the subject of healthcare, branded Harris a “Marxist” and pushed baseless claims that Haitian migrants in Springfield, Ohio were eating dogs and cats.

That last one was met with equal amounts of condemnation and ridicule, with many using Simpsons memes - including voice actor Hank Azaria - to poke fun at Trump.

An unsubstantiated rumour involving JD Vance and a couch was hard to shift, too…

To make matters worse for the Republican duo, in addition to the “weird” accusations, vice presidential candidate JD Vance became the subject of a fake claim that his 2016 memoir Hillbilly Elegy contained an anecdote about the politician “f***ing an inside-out latex glove shoved between two couch cushions”.

What didn’t help was that the Associated Press ended up publishing - and later retracting - a fact-check on the story, and even his Democrat opponent Tim Walz made a ‘couch’ gag during one of his rallies.

Vance himself even cracked an ill-timed couch joke during a rally in Nevada, which was met with instant ridicule.

What’s all this about Project 2025 - and what does it really say?

And the Democrats weren’t just attacking Trump and Vance’s “weird” personalities throughout the election campaign, they were also warning of what’s been described as a “blueprint” for a second Trump presidency known as ‘Project 2025’.

Published by the right-wing Heritage Foundation, Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise details a range of policy proposals for a future president (basically Trump) to adopt once in office, including the dismantling of what it calls the “administrative state”.

Speaking of weird...

There were a number of weird election adverts which cropped up across the election campaign - just take a look at the video above.

When the Democrats’ labelling of Trump and Vance as ‘weird’ really stuck

And if they weren’t using memes to make a name for themselves, the Democrats were reportedly drawing up digs at Republicans which would really get under their skin - namely branding both Donald Trump and JD Vance “weird”.

That’s it.

Yet Vance couldn’t successfully brush off the very basic jibe, instead claiming the attack was “a little bit of projection”.

“They’re name-calling instead of actually telling the American people how they’re going to make their lives better. I think that’s weird, Dana, but look, they can call me whatever they want to,” he said.

Kamala Harris gives herself pep talk in surprise SNL appearance

Not a meme, per se, but an honourable mention in our recap of Harris memes has to touch upon the vice president’s appearance on Saturday Night Live just days before the election to take part in a skit with Bridesmaids actor Maya Rudolph.

It’s been described as “one of the best, most memorable cold opens” and one which will “go down in history”.

The Harris memes: In need of some music recommendations?

After Harris paid a visit to Home Records in Washington DC last year, and enthusiastically showed off her purchases to the press waiting outside (she’s a fan of Roy Ayers, Charlie Mingus and Louis Armstrong, if you were wondering), social media users hijacked a picture of her holding up one of the vinyls to recommend music of their own.

On a night as tense as this, we don’t think jazz is appropriate.

The Harris memes: ‘You think you just fell out of a coconut tree?’

Soon after the brat memes came memes about comments made by Harris back in April 2023, when she was talking about the future prospects of young people.

She said: “My mother used to- she would give us a hard time sometimes, and she would say to us: ‘I don’t know what’s wrong with you young people. You think you just fell out of a coconut tree? You exist in the context of all in which you live and what came before you.’”

The Harris memes: ‘Kamala is brat’

And not long after Harris became the new pick, she capitalised on the online reaction to ride the waves of memes tying her to Charli XCX’s smash hit album brat - even using the bright green colour scheme to announce Walz as her running mate.

Harris vs Trump: Where it all began

At first, this week’s election looked set to be a repeat of what happened last time around in 2020. Democrat Joe Biden would go up against Republican Donald Trump and the American electorate will probably feel a slight sense of déjà vu.

But the reality was something dramatically different. After a dire performance at the first US presidential debate back in June, Biden faced mounting pressure to step aside amid concerns over his wellbeing.

And he did, conceding in a letter published a month later that it was in the "best interest of my party and my country" to stand down at the end of his current term.

He was replaced by current vice president Kamala Harris, who picked Minnesota governor Tim Walz as her running mate.

Melania 'body double' conspiracy theories return as Trumps cast vote

It followed Donald Trump and wife Melania when they were in the White House - with Trump claiming it was caused by journalists doctoring photos - and now the conspiracy theory that Ms Trump has a body double has resurfaced as footage of the couple casting their votes in Florida circulated online.

"I'm glad they brought back Fake Melania for the season finale," one joked.

Another tweet commenting on an MSNBC clip of Trump and a sunglasses-wearing Melania, which has more than 51,000 likes on the platform, reads: "Yo, am I crazy, or is that a fake Melania standing next to him?"

Others have even donned wigs and shared parody photos of their own to poke fun at the theories.

What are the seven ‘swing states’ - and how might they pave the way to the White House?

In a UK general election, 326 (out of 650) seats is the minimum magic number to hit to secure a majority and win the general election, but what about the US?

Well first and foremost, it isn’t down to states or localities in the same way that we see with UK constituencies. Instead, all 50 states have varying amounts of electoral college representatives, and a candidate needs at least 270 electors (out of 538) to become US President.

Most states choose all their electors from the same party, based on the winner of a standard popular vote. Those electors will then vote for their candidate in the electoral college.

Using average polling projections gives an idea of how many electoral college votes will almost certainly go to the Democrats and Republicans - 191 to Kamala Harris, and 131 to Donald Trump.

Then there’s those which will lean towards either candidate - 35 for Harris and 88 for Trump.

Add those two numbers together and you have 226 for Harris and 219 for Trump, with 93 electoral college votes still up for grabs.

These comprise Pennsylvania (19), Georgia (16), North Carolina (16), Michigan (15), Arizona (11), Wisconsin (10) and Nevada (6).

And all but one of these (North Carolina) switched to Biden in 2020 under incredibly tight vote margins - some as low as 0.3%.

If NC once again goes to the Republicans, then that will take Trump to 235 electoral college votes. He would still need another 35 votes to secure the magic 270.

Except, according to final polls from The New York Times/Sienna College, North Carolina could be a win for Harris, along with Nevada, Wisconsin and Georgia.

All of these would take Harris to 274.

Trump, meanwhile, is indicated to potentially win Arizona, with Pennsylvania and Michigan tied on 48% and 47% each, respectively.

Adding the possible Arizona win onto the aforementioned 219 figure for Trump, that’s 230.

If Pennsylvania - the state which saw Trump survive his first assassination attempt - and Michigan go to the Republican, then that would give him 264 votes, missing out on the key number by just six votes and leaving just a 10-vote gap behind Harris.

The six votes from Nevada would take Trump over the line, and to make everything super dramatic: the NYT projections for all seven of these states are within the margin of error, so nothing is certain.

Not to mention that a recent poll out of Iowa predicting an unexpected Harris win has caused some upset…

Strap in.

People aren't keen on Channel 4's choice of panellists...

UK channels have begun their election night coverage, and social media users aren't all that happy to see disgraced former prime minister Boris Johnson making an appearance on Channel 4.

The Tory, who recently published his memoir Unleashed, is joining Emily Maitlis and Krishnan Guru-Murthy on the channel, as well as former Trump press secretary Sean Spicer.

One Twitter/X user tweeted: "Saw Boris Johnson. Turned over. No thanks."

"What were @Channel4 thinking having Boris Johnson and Sean Spicer as panelists on their election night coverage? Utterly unserious and so unwatchable. Johnson plugging his book was the final straw and it had only been on for 5 minutes," wrote another.

TV critic Scott Bryan shared a clip where Johnson plugged the book just minutes into the live coverage.

Oh boy...

How do exit polls work?

We all remember the shocking exit poll which (correctly) predicted a Labour landslide in the UK general election, but how do exit polls work, especially in the US?

The video above offers a handy explainer…

When will we know the results?

Good evening Brits and afternoon/evening Americans.

Liam O'Dell here reporting on the latest developments across the pond as the US decides who will become the 47th president of the United States.

We look set to be in for a long night as we wait for the results, with the first polling centers closing at 6pm local time and closing at 8pm local - some of these being on the West Coast of the USA, which obviously means the early hours for Britons thanks to time zones.

If Donald Trump loses 2024 US election, most Americans and Brits are fearing violence

Two thirds of Brits and more than half of Americans fear violence in the US if Donald Trump loses the 2024 election, according to a YouGov poll.

65 per cent of Brits think violence would likely happen, with 15 per cent of those surveyed saying it "definitely would".

In America, 52 per cent of people polled said violence would at least "probably happen" with 19 per cent of all people saying "definitely would".

Read more here

A reminder of what happened at the Harris vs Trump presidential debate

In contrast to the debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden which marked the beginning of the end for the latter’s campaign for a second consecutive term in the White House, it was the Republican candidate who - in the eyes of many - ended up giving the poorest performance when he went up against Kamala Harris.

He claimed his Democrat opponent wanted to carry out “transgender operations on illegal aliens that are in prison”, said that he had “concepts of a plan” on the subject of healthcare, branded Harris a “Marxist” and pushed baseless claims that Haitian migrants in Springfield, Ohio were eating dogs and cats.

That last one was met with equal amounts of condemnation and ridicule, with many using Simpsons memes - including voice actor Hank Azaria - to poke fun at Trump.

Donald Trump shares ominous prediction in final campaign rally push

Trump stopped at Raleigh in North Carolina where he made an ominous prediction of what would happen if he was to be elected.

Trump said: "After all we've been through together, we stand on the verge of the four greatest years in American history.

“With your help we will restore America's promise and we will take back the nation that we all love so much. We are one people, one family and one glorious nation under God.

"Never, ever surrender. Together we will fight, fight, fight, and will win, win, win. November 5 will be the most important day in the history of our country."

Read more here

JD Vance slammed for calling Kamala Harris 'trash' during campaign rally speech

JD Vance has been widely condemned for his Election campaign rally speech where he described his Democrat rival Kamala Harris as "trash".

Trump's vice presidential running mate took to the stage at the event in Atlanta, Georgia, where he told supporters not to cut off friendships or family members for voting “the wrong way” in this election which is anticipated to be a close race.

But this message of unity quickly dissipated when Vance decided to insult Harris by calling her "garbage" in reference to President Joe Biden’s claim that Trump supporters are “garbage” which he later tried to clarify.

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Rihanna urges Americans to go and vote in hilarious post endorsing Kamala Harris

Global superstar Rihanna has encouraged Americans to use their vote with a hilarious post on Instagram.

But, for Barbadian singer and businesswoman Rihanna, who is ineligible to vote in the US election due to her citizenship, she has encouraged those who are able to cast their vote for her because she cannot.

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Michael Jordan speaks out against fake Donald Trump endorsement that went viral

Basketball legend Michael Jordan has spoken out after a fake endorsement of Donald Trump went viral.

Today, millions of Americans head to the polls to vote in the 2024 US Presidential election. In the hotly contested race, some celebrities have been giving their endorsements, with Kamala Harris garnering support from the likes of Beyonce, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Taylor Swift, while Trump has seen support from Elon Musk and Hulk Hogan.

Basketball star Michael Jordan has had to put the record straight after a fake post that claimed he was endorsing Donald Trump went viral.

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Did The Simpsons predict the outcome of the US election?

With US election less than 24 hours away, there is much anticipation surrounding who will be the next US president - and it's predicted to be a close one between candidates Kamala Harris and Donald Trump.

However, fans of The Simpsons reckon the long-running animated comedy has predicted who will win the election.

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Harris vs Trump: Where it all began

At first, this week’s election looked set to be a repeat of what happened last time around in 2020. Democrat Joe Biden would go up against Republican Donald Trump and the American electorate will probably feel a slight sense of déjà vu.

But the reality was something dramatically different. After a dire performance at the first US presidential debate back in June, Biden faced mounting pressure to step aside amid concerns over his wellbeing.

And he did, conceding in a letter published a month later that it was in the "best interest of my party and my country" to stand down at the end of his current term.

He was replaced by current vice president Kamala Harris, who picked Minnesota governor Tim Walz as her running mate.

Trump tells fans 'I shouldn’t have left’ the White House after losing 2020 election

Donald Trump told his supporters that “I shouldn’t have left” the White House, despite losing the 2020 election.

Republican candidate Trump has been on the campaign rally riling up his supporters and trying to drum up votes in key states.

At a campaign rally in Lititz, Pennsylvania on Sunday (3 November) Trump continued to ramp up his controversial rhetoric, leaning into false claims of election fraud, with echoes of what unfolded after his 2020 election loss where he sparked a riot on the Capitol building and attempted to overturn the result.

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