Donald Trump appears to hold an early advantage in the race for the White House, with projections indicating he will secure wins in the first two key swing states.
Kamala Harris remains a strong contender to become the first female U.S. president, but her path to victory seems increasingly challenging.
The two candidates entered Election Day virtually tied in the polls, and so far, early projections have revealed few surprises.
Mr. Trump is expected to win in traditional red states like Florida and Texas, while Ms. Harris has secured support in Democratic strongholds, including New York and Massachusetts.
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The election outcome is likely to hinge on seven battleground states as both candidates, Mr. Trump, 78, and Ms. Harris, 60, strive to reach the crucial 270 electoral votes needed for the presidency.
NBC News projects Mr. Trump as the likely winner in North Carolina and Georgia, while results in Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin remain too close or early to call.
North Carolina has not favored a Democrat since 2008, and Mr. Trump won it by a margin of 74,483 votes (1.3 points) in 2020.
Georgia, traditionally a red state, saw a narrow victory for Joe Biden in 2020, the first Democrat to win it since Bill Clinton in 1992.
Concerns are reportedly mounting in Ms. Harris’s camp, though her campaign chair, Jen O’Malley Dillon, has reassured staff that the race is “razor-thin” but “exactly as expected.”
Ms. Harris’s potential path to victory now largely depends on her winning all three of the “blue wall” states: Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Michigan.
Mr. Trump’s supporters are growing optimistic, and he plans to address them at an event in Palm Beach, Florida. Meanwhile, Ms. Harris’s aides have indicated she will not make a statement tonight.
With votes still being counted, Mr. Trump is currently projected to have 246 electoral votes compared to Ms. Harris’s 189. He also leads in the national popular vote, 51.6% to 46.9%, a metric he lost in both the 2020 and 2016 elections.
Additionally, NBC projects that Republicans will gain control of the Senate, with a forecast of 51 seats to the Democrats’ 40, while the fate of the Republican-held House remains uncertain.
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