Trump and Harris neck and neck in historic US Presidential election

The race between Democratic leader Kamala Harris and her Republican rival Donald Trump for the White House has been truly unprecedented as it saw drama, tragedy, political comebacks, fierce rhetoric and a historically razor-tight contest.

As millions of Americans headed towards polling stations on the big Election Day, many political observers billed the unpredictable race for the 47th president of the US as the most consequential one in decades while appearing to project a grim picture for the country's future under a Trump presidency. 

 

In her final days of the campaign, Vice President Harris focused on a message of hope, unity, optimism and women's rights, Trump remained fiercely combative in targeting his Democratic rival and even suggested that he may not accept the election outcome in case of a defeat.

 

Overall, it has been a roller coaster ride for both 60-year-old Harris and 78-year-old Trump.

Trump received his party's nomination in March and formally at the Republican National Convention (RNC) in July -- in a historic comeback after remaining in the political wilderness for months following several court cases.

In effect, he became the first former president to get the nomination for the top office on the planet after being convicted of a felony.

"Trump has made one of the biggest political comebacks since Richard Nixon's in terms of the political struggles that he has had in the last four years," said Communication Strategist Anang Mittal.

Just days ahead of the RNC, Trump was shot at during a rally in Pennsylvania. He suffered an upper ear injury. Minutes later, a bleeding Trump raised his fist in defiance, images that drew a lot of emotional support from his die-hard supporters.

For Harris too, it has been a dramatic ride after Biden ended his reelection campaign in July, nearly weeks after he came under severe scrutiny following his incoherent performance at a televised debate with Trump.

While dropping out of the race, Biden, 81, endorsed Harris to succeed him as the Democratic candidate.

Finally, in August, the Democratic National Convention formally nominated Harris as the party's candidate for the presidential election.

The presidential election will be a chance to "move past the bitterness, cynicism and divisive battles of the past", she said in a powerful speech at the Convention.

If Harris wins the race, she will become the first woman, first Black woman and first person of South Asian descent to become the US President.

In the overall campaign, Harris has been projecting the election as the one to protect the country's fundamental freedoms, safeguard constitutional values and ensure women's rights.

On his part, Trump has maintained his signature aggressive rhetoric and promised to rebuild the economy and rid the US of illegal immigrants.

However, there has been strong criticism of the Republican leader's roadmap to repair the economy.

"Donald Trump is offering a vision of crony rentier capitalism that has enticed many captains of industry and finance," said Joseph E Stiglitz, a Nobel laureate economist, in a column in Project Syndicate.

"In catering to their wishes for more tax cuts and less regulation, he would make most Americans' lives poorer, harder, and shorter," he said.

With voting underway on the big election day, there is no clarity on who has a better chance of winning the race.

"The elections are very close. They (the outcome) may change on the basis of a few thousand votes here or there. I think the big issue will be voter turnout tomorrow. That will determine the outcome in certain swing states," said the Executive Director of the US chapter of the Observer Research Foundation, Dhruva Jaishankar.

Kapil Sharma, a non-resident senior fellow at Atlantic Council's Middle East Programmes, also echoed similar views.

"This election is probably one of the closest elections that I can remember. I have been working in Washington for over 30 years and I don't recall an election being this tight," he said.

More than 78 million Americans have already cast their votes as of Sunday, according to the University of Florida's Election Lab which tracks early and mail-in voting across the US.

In their final rallies, the two candidates concluded their campaigns with virtually opposing visions of how to take the country forward with Harris calling for a vision to overcome "hate and divisiveness" and make a "fresh start" and Trump warning of a bleak future under a Democratic regime.

"Tonight, then, we finish, as we started with optimism, with energy, with joy," said Harris, closing her campaign in Pennsylvania.

In his concluding remarks, Trump said: "My message to you, and to all Americans tonight is very simple: we don't have to live like this."  The US has 50 states and most of them vote for the same party in every election except the swing states. Based on the volume of population, the states are assigned electoral college votes.

Overall a total of 538 electoral college votes are up for grabs. A candidate with 270 or more electoral votes is declared winner in the election.