NPR News Now - NPR News: 11-05-2024 8PM EST

Episode Date: November 6, 2024

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Okay, so does this sound like you? You love NPR's podcasts, you wish you could get more of all your favorite shows, and you want to support NPR's mission to create a more informed public. If all that sounds appealing, then it is time to sign up for the NPR Plus bundle. Learn more at plus.npr.org. Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Jack Spear. Another big batch of poll closings at this hour, but of the 16 states in the District of Columbia, none has more weight than Pennsylvania with its 19 electoral votes. NPR's White House correspondent, Tamara Keith, joins me now. Tam, polls have now mostly closed in Pennsylvania, the state which has seen the most campaign spending by both candidates. Why is it

this state so critical? Math, simple math. It has 19 electoral votes. It's a state that Trump won in 2016, that Biden won in 2020, and could easily swing either direction this year. It is one of those states that is just incredibly close in the polls and now we're finally going to start seeing results, but not that quickly because Pennsylvania is one of those states that doesn't allow election workers to begin counting ballots, absentee and mail ballots, until Election Day itself. So we are expecting results coming in from Pennsylvania to come in slowly. You might remember Pennsylvania wasn't called until Saturday after the election

four years ago. Yeah, four days. I mean, this is the big prize, though. This is the one they both want, right? And they are spending so much time there. I can't tell you how many times I've been to Pennsylvania in the last three months, but it's a lot. And they are spending time, they are spending money. It is clear that the Keystone state is the key because if Trump can win Pennsylvania, then he deprives Harris of many paths to that 270 electoral votes. And if Harris can lock up the blue wall, she's essentially won.

And what else are you going to be watching tonight? Well, I will be watching North Carolina and Georgia. Those are two states where we are likely to get more results more quickly. And of course, there are a number of congressional races. We want no control of the House, probably for maybe a week, because California, again, counts its votes pretty slowly. And several of the key races are out in California. All right. NPR's Tamara Keith. Thank you, Tim. One message likely to be repeated over and over

as vote counting begins in this 2024 election is that it may be a while, as we said before, the final results of these races are known. What poll posters call a blue shift or red mirage, the idea of states that appear to be going one way can change direction is more precincts report. the idea of states that appear to be going one way can change direction as more precincts report. And states that have been called as of this hour, Donald Trump has won Kentucky, Indiana, West Virginia, and according to the Associated Press, the state of Florida. And also the Associated Press has called the race for Kamala Harris in Vermont. Also in the first flip of a Senate seat, the Associated Press calling the race for Republican Jim Justice in West Virginia.

We'll be keeping an eye on all of these races and many more as the evening goes on, but those, we have more polls that have been closing and more polls will be closing in the next hour as well. So stay tuned. You're listening to NPR. Wisconsin is a key swing state in this year's election. It's been decided by less than one percentage point in four of the last six presidential races. MindSilver member station WWWM spoke to voters there.

At a polling place in a predominantly black neighborhood, 25-year-old Ke'Shania Johnson was pushing her knees in a stroller after she voted for the first time. She was not sure if she was going to vote, but she was nudged to do so by friends and family. I just want to see a lady be in the seat. I just want something different. We always had a man in the seat. Why we can't get a lady in the seat. Miles away in the suburb of Waukesha County, the heart of Wisconsin's Republican Party, businessman Ken Robinson says he voted early for Trump. I don't think we have the best candidates to choose from in this election, but it's an easy choice between Harris and Trump.

Small shifts in the voting blocks could decide if Trump or Harris wins Wisconsin. For NPR News, I'm Ayaan Silver in Milwaukee. And the Associated Press is making more race calls at this hour calling Massachusetts, Maryland and Rhode Island for Democrat, Conalda Harris. While much of this election day is focused on the top of the ticket and crucial House and Senate races, there are also some major ballot initiatives being decided across the country. Ten states have measures dealing with abortion or reproductive rights before the electorate.

There are also half a dozen measures dealing with the legalization of marijuana for recreational or medical use. A West Virginia measure would ban physician-assisted suicide. More polls will be closing as we mentioned in the 9 o'clock hour. Those include two key swing states, Arizona and Michigan. I'm Jack Spear, NPR News in Washington.