Mr. Trump and Ms. Harris face off in a flash

With just over two weeks to go until Election Day 2024, Democratic candidate Kamala Harris and Republican candidate Donald Trump are locked in a fierce race in battlegrounds that could decide the outcome of the election. Polls show the race for the White House this year is too close to call.

On October 21 (local time), Vice President Harris appeared in Pennsylvania with Liz Cheney – a famous Republican – who called on undecided voters to “reject the harsh criticism from Donald Trump”.

Meanwhile, former President Trump visited Hurricane Helene-damaged Asheville, criticizing the government ’s response to the disaster. Later, at a rally in Greenville, he emphasized his campaign message that illegal immigrants are “ruining” the country.

Vice President Harris appeared in Pennsylvania with Republican Liz Cheney. (Photo: SCMP)

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On October 21 alone, Vice President Harris scheduled events in Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, “Rust Belt” states that supported Mr. Trump in 2016 but played a key role in President Joe Biden’s victory four years later.

Liz Cheney and her father, former Vice President Dick Cheney, were once considered key figures in the Republican Party but were isolated by Mr. Trump's influence.

Ms Cheney announced her support for Vice President Harris last month, saying it was not a difficult decision for a politician or a mother.

"If you wouldn't hire someone to babysit your kids, you shouldn't elect that person to be President of the United States," she said.

Ms Harris said Mr Trump's political influence since his shock 2016 election has left Americans "blaming each other" and "exhausting" the country.

“Donald Trump is not a serious person, the consequences will be extremely serious if he becomes the President of the United States again,” she said.

Speaking in Michigan, Ms Harris urged voters to put partisan politics aside when they went to the polls. " On some issues, we all have to be Americans," she said.

Both the Democratic and Republican candidates won support from blocs that previously supported their opponents, a sign of a tight race.

Also on October 21, former President Trump called for support from Arab Americans through a social media post, calling Ms. Harris “belligerent” for the White House’s handling of Israel’s conflict with the Hamas and Hezbollah groups.

In Greenville, Mr. Trump painted a picture of an America “ravaged and ruined” by immigration, crime and inflation.

Earlier, in Asheville, North Carolina, the former president repeated conspiracy theories, accusing the administration of diverting disaster relief funds to finance the introduction of undocumented immigrants into the United States, in order to consolidate votes for the Democratic Party.

State officials were forced to issue an audit of the storm response after Mr Trump and his supporters spread what President Biden called "a series of lies".

In the 2020 election, Mr. Trump won a narrow victory in North Carolina.

Donald Trump visits the area devastated by Hurricane Helene in Swannanoa, North Carolina. (Photo: Reuters)

Both Ms. Harris and Mr. Trump are trying to win over a few thousand swing voters in key areas to get ahead in the race.

Harris’s campaign raised and spent more than $200 million in September, more than three times as much as Trump’s. Despite the vice president’s spending spree, polls have shown the race has remained close since late August.

The latest Washington Post-Schar School poll of registered voters in seven battleground states shows support for both candidates tied at 47%.

Tech billionaire Elon Musk, who supports Mr. Trump, had a huge impact on the election by pouring 75 million USD into the Political Action Committee he founded, turning social media company X into a loudspeaker and campaigning for Mr. Trump in Pennsylvania.

However, Pennsylvania Democratic Governor Josh Shapiro suggested that authorities could investigate Musk's October 19 announcement that he would award $1 million a day (until Election Day) to one person who signs a political action committee petition.

Hua Yu (Source: SCMP)

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