Who's Winning the Presidential Election? What Latest Polls Say
Washington, DC: It is five days until Election Day and the presidential polls still show that it is anyone's race.
Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump make their final pushes on the campaign trail with both of them spending time in key swing state Nevada on Thursday in hopes of swaying more voters to their side ahead of Election Day. But as we come to the end of the election cycle, many voters are not excited about election night.
Here's where Trump and Harris stand in the polls, and how Americans feel about the election as we head into the weekend before Election Day.
Who's winning the presidential race polls?
Harris and Trump are tied at 48% in the latest nationwide TIPP Tracking Poll .
In key swing states, the race is close as well. A new CNN poll conducted by SSRS found that battleground state Pennsylvania has a tied race, while a new poll from Quinnipiac University gave Trump a 1-point edge on Harris, according to reports from USA TODAY.
The latest AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll, released Thursday, shows that Democrats and Republicans are both similarly frustrated by campaigns. Democrats are more anxious though. The poll found 79% of Democrats said they were anxious compared to 66% of Republicans.
And many Americans aren't excited about the presidential contest. Only 24% of independents, 37% of Democrats, and 41% of Republicans said they feel excited about the election.
When will we know who is elected president?
That may take some time.
The anticipation around election night and the outcome doesn't mean we will know for sure who the winner will be come morning. In 2020, President Joe Biden's win was announced by the Associated Press four days after Election Day.
Voters have during early voting and on Election Day to vote for the candidates they believe are best for the political office that they are running for. But it takes some time to count all of the ballots, depending on the state and the laws in place regarding elections.
Federal law requires governors to create documents called certificates of ascertainment that begin the process of convening the Electoral College to vote for president and vice president. Secretaries of state, or another official depending on the state, compile election results from local and county governments so the winner can be declared.
Representatives of the Republican governors of New Hampshire, Vermont and Virginia − all states leaning toward Harris in polls − told USA TODAY they intend to certify the results regardless of the winner. And top election officials in Pennsylvania, Georgia, Wisconsin, and North Carolina also said they wouldn't be swayed.
Who is predicted to win the presidential race?
In September, Allan Lichtman, a historian renowned for accurately predicting 9 out of the 10 most recent presidential elections , picked Harris as the next president of the United States and his prediction still stands just days ahead of Election Day.
On Tuesday, Lichtman reiterated his prediction of a Harris win on his YouTube channel , despite Harris' leads in battleground states shrinking and polls being close.
"Nothing has changed to change my prediction that I made on Sept 5," Lichtman said, "in defiance of the polls."
When do we vote for president in 2024?
The general election is on Tuesday, Nov. 5.
This article originally appeared in Nashville Tennessean: Who's winning the presidential election? What latest polls say ?
