Candidates vie for swing state

President Donald Trump braved a stiff wind as he began a hectic last 48 hours of campaigning, with the first of 10 rallies in two days.

The president made light of the inclement weather as he rallied thousands of supporters in Michigan.

Mr Trump took to the stage yesterday in Washington Township and told the crowd: “It ’s freezing out here.”

The president is aiming to run up support in the predominantly white, more rural parts of Michigan, as Democrat Joe Biden was in the state on Saturday with former president Barack Obama in a bid to increase turnout among black voters.

Mr Trump expressed confidence and said of Mr Biden: “I don’t think he knows he’s losing.”

Yesterday the president also visited Iowa, North Carolina, Georgia and Florida.

Meanwhile, Mr Biden spent the final Sunday before election day rallying voters in the allimportant swing state of Pennsylvania.

He was making two stops in Philadelphia yesterday, an appearance at a Baptist church for a Souls To The Polls event, and a rally in Franklin Delano Roosevelt Park in the town centre.

Mr Biden’s return to Philadelphia underscores the significance of Pennsylvania, the Rust Belt state that helped deliver President Donald Trump to the White House four years ago.

Mr Biden has visited Pennsylvania more times than any other battleground state this election cycle, and Philadelphia remains a key base of Democratic support in the state.

Mr Biden and the rest of his top surrogates – his wife Jill, Senator Kamala Harris, and her husband Doug Emhoff – will also fan out across the state today.

While Mr Bid en’ s campaign argues the Democrats can still win without Pennsylvania, Mr Trump’s path to victory would narrow considerably without the state’s 20 electoral votes.

The president has made Pennsylvania a priority as well.

He held four rallies across the state on Saturday and will return today for a campaign event in Scranton, Mr Biden’s home town.

The Courier is producing a US election special edition on Wednesday.

ELECTION: A supporter listens as President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally.