How to follow the US Presidential Election 2024 results

Dubai: After months of high-intensity campaigning, it’s time to sit back and watch as American voters deliver their verdict.

It will either make Kamala Harris the first woman president in US history or deliver Donald Trump a comeback, the first non-consecutive second term for a US president since Grover Cleveland in 1893 and just the second ever.

On Election Day, Democratic Vice President Harris, 60, and Republican former President Trump, 78, were dead-even in the tightest and most volatile White House race of modern times.

And there are fears of turmoil and even violence once the results are declared.

When will the results be declared?

After votes are cast, local election officials, who may be appointed or elected, process and count them. Tallying methods vary from one location to the next.

A final outcome may not be known for several days if the results are as close as the polls suggest, adding to the tension.

Rather than waiting for winners to be declared by local authorities, US news outlets call races based on what they see in the voting. So, wait for news outlets to make the decision.

But this process is not official and results still have to be certified at the state level, with every ballot accounted for.

Do citizens vote directly for the president?

Under the US system, citizens do not vote directly for their leader. Instead, their ballots elect the 538 members of a group called the Electoral College, which then elects the president and vice president.

Each state gets a particular number of electors based on its population size. For example, California has 54 electoral votes. If a candidate wins in California, he/she gets all 54 Electoral College votes, and if a candidate loses, he/she gets none. In short, the winner takes all. The target is 270 electoral votes.

This is why presidential candidates want to win states with many Electoral College votes. The six states with the most electors are California (54), Texas (40), New York (28), Florida (30), Illinois (19), and Pennsylvania (19).

On the other hand, sparsely populated Alaska, Delaware, Vermont and Wyoming have only three electors each.

On the rare occasion, like in 2000 and 2016, a candidate can win the popular vote, but fail to win the required 270 electoral votes. This means that the winner may have won electoral votes by small margins winning just enough states with just enough electoral votes, but the losing candidate may have captured large voter margins in the remaining states.

Are there other states to watch out for?

Certain states have a long history of voting for a particular party. These are known as safe states. For example, in four election cycles, in 1996, 2000, 2004 and 2008, Democrats could count on states like Oregon, Maryland, Michigan and Massachusetts, whereas the Republicans could count on states like Mississippi, Alabama, Kansas and Idaho.

States that are teetering between the Republican and Democratic parties are called swing or battleground states.

This time, seven swing states are likely to decide the winner – Pennsylvania (19 electoral college votes), Georgia (16), North Carolina (16), Michigan (15), Arizona (11), Wisconsin (10) and Nevada (6).

What’s at stake?

Plenty.

The world is anxiously watching as the outcome will have major implications for conflicts in the Middle East, for Russia’s war in Ukraine, and for tackling climate change.

Economy

Trump, who cut taxes for businesses and the wealthy during his 2017-2021 presidency, plans to impose tariffs of more than 10 percent on all US imports, which he says will enable him to lower taxes for Americans.

Harris, meanwhile, is appealing to the middle class with her promise to create an “opportunity economy,” while pitching moderate tax hikes for the richest people.

Immigration

Trump says he will order mass deportations of millions of undocumented migrants if reelected.

Harris has pledged a tough stance and warned of “consequences” for people who enter the country illegally.

Abortion

Trump has hinted that he may restrict access to drugs used in medical abortions if reelected.

Harris wants to pass a federal law to reinstate nationwide abortion rights, making the issue a key part of her presidential campaign.

Foreign politics

With wars raging in the Middle East and in Ukraine, Trump has promised to quickly resolve both conflicts.

Harris has pledged her enduring support for Ukraine if reelected.

Both Trump and Harris offer continued backing for Israel, though the vice president has drawn more attention to the suffering of Palestinians.

Climate

Trump plans to cut subsidies for renewable energies and electric vehicles, which he says harm businesses.

Harris has promoted the “Inflation Reduction Act” of President Joe Biden, which has driven investment in green energy.

What else should you watch out for?

While all the attention will be on Trump and Harris, voters will also be choosing new members of Congress. Members in the House of Representatives are elected to two-year terms while Senate members are elected for six years.

Currently, Republicans hold a slim majority in the House with 220 seats against 213 held by the Democrats.

All 435 seats in the House of Representatives are up for grabs, along with 34 seats or one-third of the Senate. Thirty-three of those seats are up for regular election, and one is up for a special election.

Of the 34 Senate seats up for election, Democrats hold 19, Republicans hold 11, and independents hold four.