US elections 2020

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      Black women shed blood, sweat and tears to gain a voice. Granny, this vote is for you

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      With my hand on the pearls she gave me as graduation gift, I said a prayer, shed a tear and said her name: “Granny, this vote is for you.”
      Ms Rose won’t be here to see the returns come in later today, whatever the outcome might eventually be. Like many of the Black and indigenous women whose blood, sweat, and tears form the foundations of this country, she didn’t live to experience the full promise of this great experiment known as America.
      Granny died two weeks before election day.
      For nearly half her 98 years, Ms Rose was ineligible to vote – subject to a society that deemed women who looked like her worthy of being silenced. Even after the 19th amendment gave white women the right to vote, Black women remained disenfranchised.
      Neither the 19th nor the 15th amendment, which granted Black men their rights a century prior, addressed voter suppression in the form of Jim Crow laws that perpetuated segregation, legalized discrimination and barred Black communities from voting through poll taxes and literacy tests, or just plain threats of violence.
      Born in 1922 – two years after women’s suffrage – she entered a world in which Black women were “pulled in two directions”: fighting alongside Black men for racial equality and White counterparts for women’s rights, all while relegated as inferior and excluded within both movements.
      But in 1967, Granny put herself and her family on a journey, escaping the violence of Jim Crow and patriarchy in Arkansas to forge a new life in Wisconsin, a journey taken by hundreds of thousands of Black Americans who fled discrimination in the south during the Great Migration for better opportunity of the north.
      For Black journalists, our commitments to tell these stories would not be possible without the sacrifice of women like her. More

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      Trump v Biden: how to watch the US election coverage in the UK

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      So, you are in the UK and want to watch the US election results? Even after what happened in 2016 – and even though the election wasn’t called for Donald Trump until 7.30am GMT – you really want to put yourself through all that again? Well, fine. I cannot condone this sort of behaviour, but I can, begrudgingly, guide you through your viewing options.
      BBC One: US Election 202011.30pm-1pm
      Katty Kay and Andrew Neil – in his last gig for the broadcaster – will present rolling coverage, from Washington and London respectively, starting half an hour before the first presidential polls close. Jon Sopel and Clive Myrie will be with the Trump and Biden campaigns, while Nick Bryant, Emily Maitlis and others will report from various battleground states. Experts will be shepherded in for analysis and Christian Fraser will have a big screen to play with.
      Kay and Neil’s heroic – and potentially traumatising – shift will conclude at 9am. At this point, Matthew Amroliwala and Reeta Chakrabarti will begin four further hours of reaction and analysis. Hopefully, by the time this is over, we will know who won. Even if we don’t, BBC One is scheduled to return to normal. Sure, the election is important, but not important enough to derail Doctors.
      ITV: Trump Vs Biden: The Results11pm-6am
      As with all elections, ITV’s coverage will be less watched than the BBC’s, but fitfully more interesting. The good news is that Tom Bradby is holding the fort, so we might witness another of his planet-sized, shoulder-slumping sighs when he finally knocks off. However, official coverage ends at 6am, so there is an almighty chance that the result will be revealed on Good Morning Britain, provided that Piers Morgan can be quiet for long enough.
      Sky News: America Decides9pm-7am
      Sky’s election output kicks off at 9pm with an hour-long programme entitled Trump: America Interrupted, which will look at the impact of the Trump presidency. After that, results coverage begins at 10pm – four hours before many polls close – with America Decides, which Dermot Murnaghan will present live from Washington. Apparently, Sky will use its most comprehensive election data yet and will work closely with NBC News. It will also include an augmented reality “Race to the White House”, whatever that means. Either way, Kay Burley will take over at 7am.
      CNN: Election Night in America5am-9pm Thursday
      For those of you who hate sleep, CNN’s rolling coverage has already begun and will continue unbroken until The Lead with Jake Tapper begins 64 hours later. Why has such a vast amount of time been devoted to election coverage? It is almost as if CNN knows that the result will be contested and that the contest will rattle on unsatisfactorily for days.
      Other options
      As you would expect, your best bet of thorough election coverage would be to follow the Guardian’s election liveblog. But there are other options for the more news-averse. At 10pm, Comedy Central is showing the vastly underrated Die Hard knock-off White House Down. And, given his bracing, shellshocked reaction four years ago, you would be foolish to miss Stephen Colbert’s Showtime election show; it won’t be shown live on UK TV, but it will be all over YouTube after it airs. Then again, you could just go to bed as normal and avoid the whole sorry mess. More

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      US shops boarded up ahead of feared election unrest – video

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      In anticipation of possible election-rated civil unrest, buildings in downtown New York City and in Beverly Hills have been boarded up. As a response to an NYPD advisory, stores and businesses that may be affected by demonstrations have put up boards to protect glass windows. Security around the White House in Washington DC has also been strengthened
      US election 2020: Trump and Biden make final pitches with historic election hours away – live More

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      Obama compares Trump to a 'two-bit dictator' who lies ‘every single day' – video

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      Former US president Barack Obama has criticised Donald Trump for casting doubt on the results of the election, likening him to strongmen elsewhere in the world. Addressing a drive-in rally in Miami on Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden’s behalf, Obama said his successor has suggested he may declare victory before all the votes are counted. ‘That’s something a two-bit dictator does,’ Obama said. The former president also accused Trump of ‘lying every single day … the fact-checkers can’t keep up, it’s like, just over and over again’
      US election 2020: Obama accuses Trump of ‘lying every single day’ at Florida rally for Biden – live More

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      How millions of new voters could shape the US election

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      If the polling is correct, Joe Biden will become the 46th president of the United States. But four years ago, the polling was wrong – so if we want to understand the political future of the country, it’s important to look to more reliable sources of information than just the polls.
      And to look at some voter groups that could be important.
      The early voting data is valuable
      Early voting data is an important place to start. There is no doubt that at least 97 million votes have already been cast – those have been counted and are far more precise than any survey. And because those numbers are so high, we can predict that overall turnout is likely to break records.
      In Texas, so many early votes have been cast that the current ballot count is equal to at least 108% of all the votes counted in the state in 2016.
      This early voting data is much more valuable than simple polling because we also have information about party registration. So we can say with a high degree of confidence that most early votes have been cast for the Democratic party (assuming that people have not suddenly and dramatically made recent changes in their political affiliations).
      Based on the 20 states where party ID information was available, almost half (45%) of the votes reported as of Monday afternoon had come from people registered with the Democratic party and 31% had come from registered Republicans. This is consistent with previous elections, where Democrats have been much more likely to cast early ballots.
      A global pandemic and concerns about voter suppression have encouraged many to vote early and avoid the potential crowds and confusion on Tuesday. But these numbers are so high that they can’t be explained simply by regular voters casting their ballots early. In fact, of those that have already voted, about 24 million (a quarter of the ballots) are from people who did not vote in 2016 and 8 million (8%) are from people who are voting for the first time.
      In other words, turnout is increasing because non-voters are showing up.
      Non-voters turning out now are a powerful force
      Not least because of his handling of the pandemic crisis, Trump has been having problems with two important demographic groups – seniors and suburban women, polls have suggested. “I saved your suburbs – women – suburban women, you’re supposed to love Trump,” he said at one rally in Muskegon, Michigan.
      But perhaps the most important group are those who have not voted until this election. In 2016, 41% of adults who were eligible to vote did not do so. If “did not vote” had been a political party, it would have swept the country, winning all but eight states and DC. So, if we want to better understand what is going to happen on Tuesday, we need to take a closer look at non-voters.
      People who do not vote in US presidential elections are younger than those who do, according to survey data gathered by Pew Research Center after the 2016 election … More

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      TV tonight: the moment of truth for Trump and Biden

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      US election night 11pm, BBC One; ITV; Sky NewsThe road to the 2020 US election has felt even more dramatic than anticipated, taking in everything from the “October surprise” of Trump being admitted to hospital to the unfurling consequences of the pandemic and the Black Lives Matter movement. Tonight, the votes are counted and there won’t be any shortage of options in terms of assessing the news from the battleground states. Andrew Neil on the BBC? Tom Bradby on ITV? Or Ed Conway on Sky? Get ready for a nail-biter. Ammar KaliaAung San Suu Kyi: The Fall of an Icon 9pm, BBC TwoFrom Nobel peace prize winner to facing accusations of genocide, Aung San Suu Kyi has had an unpredictable fall from grace. This documentary charts her history from imprisonment to election victory before analysing her widely criticised response to violence against Rohingya Muslims. AKChannel Hopping With Jon Richardson 9pm, Comedy CentralRichardson enters the Clive James territory of pointing at telly and laughing, with a collection of wacky clips from around the world. His guests this week are Ivo Graham, whose TV obsessions are Britain’s Got Talent and Blind Date, and Judi Love on US cult classic Finding Bigfoot. Jack SealeBlack Monday 9pm, Sky ComedyThe periodically amusing Wall Street comedy starring Don Cheadle and Regina Hall returns. As season two begins, everyone is dealing with the cold, hard reality of what a stock market crash really entails. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t deals to make and opportunities to pursue if you know where to look. Phil HarrisonEducating Greater Manchester 9.15pm, Channel 4This series returns to Harrop Fold secondary in Salford. Headteacher Mr Povey’s career is under threat, while a new year 8 pupil arrives from Calcutta and tries to fit in with the students. We also catch up with Vincent, who promises he has reformed his mischievous ways. AKAlton Towers: A Rollercoaster Year 10.15pm, Channel 4This has been the year of the furlough documentary, revealing how UK attractions – from stately homes to zoos – have coped during lockdown. This latest addition doubles as a comeback special, shadowing staff at the venerable theme park as they prepare for reopening in a tight 12-day window. Graeme VirtueFilm choice More

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      America prepares to deliver its verdict after Trump replays 2016 campaign

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      The crowd was small at first. But as the night wore on, the numbers grew and so did belief in miracles. In the early hours of 9 November 2016, Donald Trump and family walked into the ballroom of a midtown Manhattan hotel to celebrate one of the greatest political upsets of all time.“Now it is time for America to bind the wounds of division – have to get together,” the new president-elect said. “To all Republicans and Democrats and independents across this nation, I say it is time for us to come together as one united people.”The speech is now all the more striking because, in the view of countless critics, Trump spent the next four years doing precisely the opposite. His norm-busting presidency deepened divisions, poured oil on flames, stress tested institutions to breaking point and rendered truth itself a partisan issue.And on Tuesday, millions of Americans will deliver their verdict in a referendum on Trump’s first term, after a bitterly fought election campaign that has left the nation with even deeper wounds than those exposed four years ago.Trump’s opponent, former vice-president Joe Biden, has left the president trailing in every major national opinion poll since becoming Democrats’ presumptive nominee in April. Biden commands a bigger lead over Trump, nationally and in several crucial battleground states, than the ill-fated Hillary Clinton did at the same stage in 2016.Yet the stunning repudiation of the political establishment that year has left Democrats haunted. There is little sign of complacency in the Biden camp amid the profound uncertainties of an election campaign waged against the backdrop of the coronavirus pandemic, and fears that the incumbent will seek to declare victory prematurely and prevent every vote being counted.As both candidates spent Monday in a final frenzied sprint across battleground states, Trump was in trouble. Past incumbents have successfully made elections about not themselves but their opponents. George W Bush shifted the spotlight to challenger John Kerry. Barack Obama did likewise to Mitt Romney. But this president’s profligate and shambolic campaign could neither escape the pandemic nor find a way to define Biden. It is still all about Trump. More

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      It's not just Trump – to much of the world, the US is a bully whoever is in charge | Mohammed Hanif

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      Our American friends are worried about their president. They are telling us – even in what may be his final months in office – that Donald Trump is sick, that he is a fascist, that he is a grotesque parody of a proper US president.
      As a long-suffering citizen of a world run by US presidents, may I remind them that he is not very different from the other presidents that I and the rest of the non-American world have suffered for the past half century. Americans say they are better people than Trump. In solidarity, one might be tempted to say that, yes, sure, we are also better people than Trump. But one is compelled to add that although those former presidents might have had better syntax than Trump, worn better-fitted suits, had finer dance moves, weren’t proud “pussy grabbers”, or cunning tax dodgers, being a world-class bully has always been a part of the job.
      The US has always elected a bully, nurtured him and asked him to go out in the world and do the presidential thing: fight the evil that is the rest of us. At the same time they have expected their president to be nice at home, have mercy on their Thanksgiving turkey and keep talking about the American dream and affordable healthcare.
      Abroad, US presidents have wrought havoc, invaded and destroyed places whose names they could never pronounce, hosted murderous dictators from around the world at Camp David and found even more bloodthirsty ones to replace them.
      Trump has just brought all that bullying home. More