NPR News Now - NPR News: 11-04-2024 5AM EST

Episode Date: November 4, 2024

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Support for this podcast and the following message come from Autograph Collection Hotels, with over 300 independent hotels around the world, each exactly like nothing else. Autograph Collection is part of the Marriott Bonvoy portfolio of hotel brands. Find the unforgettable at autographcollection.com. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Dave Mattingly. After months of speeches and rallies, this is the final full day of campaigning for Vice President Harris and former President Donald Trump in the race for the White House. Election day is tomorrow.

NPR's Deepa Sivaram says Harris will spend the day making multiple stops in the swing state of Pennsylvania. Harris will campaign in Pittsburgh and make stops in Allentown and Redding, which both have a large Puerto Rican population. It's a group whose vote Harris has been trying to court since a comedian made disparaging remarks about the island at a recent event for former President Trump. Several celebrities will join Harris throughout the day, including Lady Gaga, Fat Joe and Katy Perry. Harris will end the night with a rally in Philadelphia late Monday before heading

back to Washington. She'll be at Howard University, her alma mater, on election night. Deepa Sivaram, NPR News, Detroit. Donald Trump will be campaigning in North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Michigan today. The Republican presidential nominee is holding rallies in each state. In Macon, Georgia yesterday, Trump described Election Day 2024 as... The most important political event in the history of our country, I believe that. But you have to do one little thing. I don't want your money, I don't want anything. The only thing I want is get

out and vote. Just get out, finish it. More than 75 million Americans have taken part in early voting according to the University of Florida's election lab. There's word from Los Angeles this morning that music legend Quincy Jones has died at the age of 91. According to his publicist, Jones died yesterday at his home in Bel Air, California. A cause of death was not given. During his long career, Jones was known for producing Michael Jackson's album Thriller as well as collaborations with Frank Sinatra, Ray Charles, and hundreds of other artists. The UN says the effort to vaccinate children in Gaza against polio is wrapping up today. More than 450,000 children in central and southern Gaza

have received a second dose, which is necessary to stop transmission. As NPR's Juliana Kim reports, the final vaccinations are being administered today in northern Gaza. The United Nations reported that nearly 60,000 children in northern Gaza received the final dose of the polio vaccine

on Saturday. The goal is to vaccinate 100,000 children in the region. Getting this done in northern Gaza has been tough, though. The Israeli military only agreed to pause fighting in Gaza City, arguing that people in other areas have been largely evacuated. Still, the UN says there's about 15,000 kids in northern areas outside Gaza City, and missing them could undermine the vaccine campaign. Juliana Kim, NPR News. This is NPR News from Washington.

Germany's top diplomat is in Ukraine today on an unannounced visit. The foreign minister's trip to Kyiv appears to be another show of European support for Ukraine and its president, Volodymyr Zelensky, with Russia's invasion of Ukraine inching closer to the three-year mark. In recent weeks, the Pentagon and NATO have confirmed the presence of North Korean troops in Russia to help Russia's military with the war. The pro-Western leader of the former Soviet Republic of Moldova is declaring victory in the country's presidential runoff election.

As NPR's Charles Maynes reports, that election is viewed by many as the latest test of Russian influence in the former USSR. With nearly all ballots counted, incumbent Maya Sandu led a Socialist Party challenger with 55 percent of the vote. Sandu called it an endorsement of Moldova's dignified European future. And pro-Western policy, she has accelerated in the wake of Russia's invasion of Moldova's neighbor Ukraine. Yet her margin of victory came in part thanks to expatriate Moldovans voting in the West.

Sandu trailed among voters inside the country. The election was marred by claims of Russian-backed ballot rigging and disinformation, charges Moscow denies. Sandu's team argues outside interference distorted the results and public support for an earlier referendum on whether to make joining the European Union state policy. The EU mandate passed, but by the slimmest of margins. Charles Maynes, NPR News. The Cayman Islands are under a hurricane watch because of a tropical disturbance in the Caribbean.

The National Hurricane Center has posted a tropical storm warning for Jamaica. I'm Dave Mattingly, NPR News in Washington. Who's claiming power at this election? What's happening in battleground states? And why do we still have the electoral college? All this month, the Throughline Podcast is asking big questions about our democracy and going back in time to answer them. Listen now to the Throughline Podcast from NPR.