IN less than a week, on November 3, it will be the final day of voting in the most demanding and challenging election in US history.
President Donald Trump and his Democratic challenger, former vice-president Joe Biden, are hitting the trail headed to the seven “battleground states” of Arizona, Florida, Michigan, Minnesota, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, with the only topic on voters’ minds being the Covid-19 pandemic.
Due to the virus, voters have been encouraged to cast their ballots by mail or go in person to early-voting polling sites.
The numbers are stunning. With over 60 million votes in, the US is on pace to have nearly 90 million ballots banked before the polls open for the final day of voting next week.
In contrast, back in 2016, Hillary Clinton won the popular vote with nearly 2.8 million more ballots than Trump, and now, Biden is expected to push that number to closer to four million, if not more.
So, why are the two candidates only spending time in these seven states?
It is all about the Electoral College at this point, and we know that with very few exceptions, the rest of the 44 states are solidly a Trump or Biden state.
But the president can once again lose the popular vote, and yet, still emerge victorious by doing what he did in 2016 – winning the Electoral College by breaking the 270 votes needed.
To win re-election, Trump will need to take Arizona, Florida, North Carolina and Pennsylvania, and any combination of Michigan, Minnesota or Wisconsin, to break that 270 barrier.
The key statistic for Biden is that he has surpassed the 50% mark in recent national and battleground surveys, while Trump remains mired in the low- to mid-40s. So, the path to getting the 270 Electoral College votes is difficult, but not impossible, while there are many more paths to 270 for Biden that do not include either Florida or Pennsylvania.
From now until the early morning of November 3, look for both Trump and Biden in those seven states, and perhaps a couple more, before the polls open for the final time.
Even though we do not expect to know the final outcome on Tuesday evening or even Wednesday morning, we should have a good idea of who the winner will be. – The Vibes, October 30, 2020
Tomorrow: What the heck is the Electoral College?
Jim Williams is a seven-time Emmy Award-winning producer and broadcaster, and is The Vibes’ US correspondent
