The race between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump for the White House has tightened with two months to go before Election Day, as a series of new polls shows them essentially in a dead heat.
Trump has edged ahead of Clinton in a new CNN/ORC poll, at 45 per cent to 43 per cent among likely voters, while an NBC News poll of registered voters meanwhile shows Clinton's lead holding at six percentage points -- 48 per cent to 42 per cent.
And another survey, this one by The Washington Post looking at all 50 states, shows Clinton with a solid lead in terms of electoral college votes, and even strength in some traditional Republican strongholds.
The various polls show how close the race is looking to November 8, and makes the battle for the so-called swing states all the more important.
Clinton was headed to Florida today to appear at a voter registration event, while the billionaire real estate mogul was due in Virginia for a town hall meeting and in North Carolina for an evening campaign rally.
"Thank you! #AmericaFirst," Trump tweeted with the new CNN poll results.
The candidates have less than three weeks to go before the first of three scheduled presidential debates -- expected to be the most watched moments of what so far has been a raucous campaign.
After hinting last month that he might not participate in all of them, Trump told reporters he was on board.
"I expect to do all three," he said.
The candidates yesterday used Labour Day -- the traditional launch of the home stretch of the presidential campaign -- to push their arguments that they would be best for working-class Americans.
But the Republican flagbearer's unorthodox White House bid, including his campaign's apparent imperviousness to criticism about his harsh rhetoric, assures a tight contest for the next two months.
"I'm not taking anybody, anywhere for granted," Clinton told a crowd of more than 1,000 at a picnic in Cleveland.
"I'm ready. I'm more than ready," she said of the intense battle ahead as she attempts to become the first female US commander in chief.
Clinton, 68, debuted her new campaign plane -- with the slogan "Stronger Together" emblazoned on the side -- and brought the press corps aboard her jet for the first time.
Under extensive criticism from her rival and journalists for not holding a full press conference in nine months, she answered questions for more than 22 minutes on several topics, including tensions with Russia over accusations of cyber-espionage.
Clinton expressed "grave" concern about reports that Russia has been interfering in the US electoral process through invasive cyber attacks on the Democratic Party and an apparent attack on voter registration systems in Arizona.
And she implied Moscow was trying to help get the 70-year-old Trump elected.
"I think it's quite intriguing that this activity has happened around the time Trump became the nominee," she said.
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Trump's schedule announced yesterday includes multiple stops in Michigan, Pennsylvania, Iowa, Florida, North Carolina and Virginia. His vice presidential nominee will address rallies in Michigan, Virginia, Florida, North Carolina, New Hampshire, Minnesota and Pennsylvania.
Obama would continue with his election blitz by addressing rallies in New Hampshire, Michigan, and Florida.
Clinton's meetings are scheduled in Ohio, New Hampshire, North Carolina, and Michigan, while her husband Bill, a former US president, would seek vote for her in Michigan.
Chelsea, Clinton's daughter, has as many as five meetings scheduled in Philadelphia, while the Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Kaine has meetings scheduled in North Carolina, Virginia and Wisconsin.
Senator Bernie Sanders, who lost to Clinton during the Democratic primaries, too has been campaigning extensively.
Over the next two days, he is scheduled to address meetings in Arizona and Nevada. Vice President Joe Biden is scheduled to hold rallies in Florida and Pennsylvania.
Trump may not have Clinton's celebrities, but he has relied on his family for public support at times.
However, the electoral college might present a different picture, given the nature of presidential elections.
Lee M Miringoff, director of The Marist College Institute for Public Opinion, said: "Although Clinton and Trump are separated by the slimmest of margins, the Electoral College can present a very different picture. Close popular votes can, but do not necessarily, translate into tight battles for 270 electoral votes," he said.
