Editorial 04.11.24
Election looms – the final sprint to the White House
The US front pages
Just one day to go until the US Presidential election and the US front pages are firmly focused on the last day of campaigning. Both Harris and Trump will spend their final day of campaigning in the battleground states trying to win over voters, and with the latest polling suggesting the race is still too tight to call, it looks set that the election will go to the wire.
‘Foreign interference in US election difficult to track,’ writes the New York Times.
The New York Times reports foreign interference in American elections has become far more sophisticated and difficult to track. The paper warns that disinformation has matured into a consistent and pernicious threat and that the ability to convince just a small number of Americans could have outsize consequences.
‘Trump brought culture of rage and retribution to the USA,’ says The LA Times.
The LA Times reports on the “culture of rage and retribution” brought on by Donald Trump’s political hold on the “American imagination.” The paper reports those who support Trump have turned on librarians, teachers and election workers. “Librarians are harassed, teachers vilified, election workers threatened. Immigrants are demonized and armed groups march outside state capitols. Even meteorologists are targeted in conspiracy theories.”
‘Harris uses her final speech to say she’ll be president for all Americans,’ says The Washington Post.
The Washington Post dedicates most of its front page to the election, with several different stories. Its lead article reports on the final stretch of the election saying Kamala Harris used her campaign stops in Michigan to reiterate her message that she will be a president for all Americans, whilst Trump used his latest speech to double down on “portraying a dystopian future for the country that he claimed only he could fix.” The paper highlights the starkly different closing messages from the two candidates.
‘Election officials prepping for protests and violence,’ USA Today says.
USA TODAY reports election officials are prepping for protests and possible violence. The article says that despite polls showing it’s still a toss-up race in the key swing states, Donald Trump is already prepping his supporters with claims of fraud if they don’t win the election. He has already – and without evidence – named Detroit, Milwaukee and Philadelphia as places where fraud could occur.
‘Dems counting on voters being tired of Trump,’ says the Wall Street Journal.
The Wall Street Journal has a few election articles on its front page. Its lead reports Democrats are counting on voters to get tired of Trump’s messaging and will switch to Democrats.
What do the newspapers from the swing states say?
For the 2024 election, the key swing states to watch are Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
‘Arizona expecting high voter turnout – up to 75%,’ says The Arizona Republic.
The Arizona Republic writes that the state’s projected voter turnout for the election is expected to top 75%. Arizona is home to more than 4.3 million voters who are eligible to participate in this year’s general election, according to the secretary of state’s latest published voter registration figures.
‘Trump talks of reporters getting shot whilst Harris talks about healing divisions,’ notes The AJC.
Georgia’s The Atlanta Journal-Constitution highlights the stark differences between what the two candidates offer. The paper says Trump spent one of his last speeches suggesting he wouldn’t mind journalists being shot whilst Harris told a crowd that God offers America a “divine plan strong enough to heal division.”
‘Making sure women go out a vote will be key for Harris,’ writes The Muskegon Chronicle.
Michigan’s The Muskegon Chronicle highlights the role women could play in deciding the outcome of this election. “Combined they represent almost 30% of the county’s voting population of more than 943,221 registered voters. There are 522,536 registered Democrats and 270,952 registered Republicans.” Women traditionally vote Democratic and for Harris it will be “crucial” to make sure they get out and vote.
‘Sprint to the finish line,’ says the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
Las Vegas Review-Journal says “Sprint to the finish line” with an image of Trump supporters holding up signs saying “Trump will fix it.”
‘Thousands line up to see one of Trump’s final rallies,’ reports Gaston Gazette.
Gaston Gazette leads with Trump as he visited Gastonia. The paper says thousands of people lined up outside the airport to attend one of the former president’s final rallies before the election.
