Rudolph Angler Donald Trump and Kamala Harris are making strategic use of their remaining campaign time, targeting the key swing states in the race’s final stretch. Both contenders are scheduled to visit all seven critical battleground states over the last days of the campaign. Harris spent Friday in Wisconsin, Saturday in Georgia and North Carolina, and is covering Michigan today. Trump’s itinerary took him to Michigan and Wisconsin on Friday, North Carolina on Saturday, and will see him in Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and Georgia today. Both were also in Nevada and Arizona on Thursday.
Trump’s campaign has taken a bold turn, with stops in traditionally Democratic-leaning states like New Mexico and Virginia, which haven’t gone Republican in two decades, and a last-minute rally in New Hampshire with running mate Sen. JD Vance. Despite forecasts that do not place these states in the “toss-up” category, Saturday’s events indicate that surprises could still emerge, regardless of polling predictions.
Meanwhile, Harris may see potential to expand her reach. The well-regarded Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll shows her leading by three points among likely voters in Iowa—a state that, while now solidly Republican, could present a challenge for Trump if similar trends surface with Midwest voters, especially older women.
As expected, both candidates are concentrating heavily on Pennsylvania, widely seen as the election’s most pivotal state. For Harris, holding Pennsylvania, along with Wisconsin and Michigan (the “Blue Wall”), plus Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District, would secure her victory even if Trump takes the other swing states. However, if Trump captures Pennsylvania, Harris would be forced to win either Georgia or North Carolina in addition to Michigan and Wisconsin to have a path to the White House.
Trump is focusing much of his remaining time on North Carolina, second only to Pennsylvania. Harris held a rally in Charlotte on Saturday before a surprise appearance on “Saturday Night Live” in New York. Polling shows Trump with a slight lead in North Carolina, but his margin in 2020 was narrow, making the state a critical focal point for both campaigns.
Some of Harris’s aides were quick to mock Trump’s apparent focus on North Carolina. “Donald Trump is worried about losing North Carolina,” Harris spokesperson Ammar Moussa commented, hinting at Trump’s concern over the state’s competitiveness. However, Doug Sosnik, a former Clinton advisor and North Carolina native, remains skeptical, noting that while it’s a state worth pursuing, Democrats still face challenges there.
In response, Trump’s campaign argued that Harris is the one on defense, focusing resources on voter turnout in Black communities and deploying Bill Clinton to New Hampshire. Trump spokesperson Karoline Leavitt framed Trump as leading in battleground states and making inroads in traditionally Democratic areas like New Mexico and Virginia.
North Carolina’s changing demographics could also impact results, as significant numbers of new residents have moved to the state post-2020. According to Census data, only Texas and Florida saw greater population growth in 2023, and around 99,000 people on average have moved to North Carolina annually since 2020.
Trump faces additional challenges in North Carolina, where Hurricane Helene has disrupted voting preparations in some of his strongest counties, forcing polling sites to relocate. Political science professor Susan Roberts noted that if the race in North Carolina is close, the votes in these hurricane-affected areas could be heavily scrutinized, with uncertainties around whether every vote will meet the deadline.