LIVE – American presidential election: Donald Trump says he is “very confident”, Joe Biden calls on citizens to vote

THE ESSENTIAL

• THE polling stations opened in the United States this Tuesday, presidential election day when Americans are called upon to choose between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris to lead the country.
• Once the polling stations close, the counting of votes will begin across the country: a process that differs from state to state and which could take daysparticularly in the event of disputes and legal recourse.
• The National Guard, emergency call buttons, barricaded businesses: the United States is on alert before Tuesday's presidential election, which will be one of the most secure elections in the country's history.

LIVE

7:41 p.m. | “There will be no violence” in the event of defeat, promises Donald Trump

After voting in Florida, Donald Trump explained that he did not need to call on his supporters not to resort to violence in the event of defeat. “There will be no violence, assured the Republican candidate, according to comments reported by CNN. My supporters are not violent people. I don't need to tell them.”

7:34 p.m. | And when will the results be due?

When we know that Donald Trump has already planned a whole battery of remedies in the event of defeat, or even in the event of a small difference, we can expect… to wait for the final results. Will the 244 million American voters be decided on November 5? Nothing is less certain. In 2020, the outcome of the vote was only known four days after the vote, whereas in 2016 the result fell in the evening. At issue in the first case, the long counting of postal ballots, twice as numerous as in 2016, due to Covid.

Photo AFP/Frederic J. BROWN

Donald Trump seized on the subject to accuse the Democratic camp of cheating, resulting in the assault on the Capitol on January 6, 2021. In 2000, during the George W. Bush/Al Gore duel, at the request of the Democratic candidate, he took a month for the Supreme Court to decide on the vote count in Florida.

For the record, with the United States covering three time zones, each state having its own electoral system and the last polling stations closing at 8 p.m., if all goes well, Americans could know the name of the 47th tenant of the White House around 11 p.m. and the French at 5 a.m. Paris time.

7:29 p.m. | “We have the safest elections,” assures Kamala Harris’s running mate

Tim Walz, Kamala Harris' running mate who could become vice-president if the Democratic candidate is elected, wanted to reassure American voters about fears of fraud during this presidential election.

“We have the fairest, freest and most secure elections. We have a free press that moderates the elections and makes sure that everything goes well,” he assured from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

7:24 p.m. | Presidential election in the United States: how does it work?

A candidate can come out on top in nationwide votes and still lose the election. In 2016, Hillary Clinton received 2.89 million more votes than Donald Trump. But it was the Republican who was declared the winner because he had obtained a majority of electors. In reality, American voters will elect neither Trump nor Harris but 538 electors. California is the state with the most (54) and Alaska the least (3).

To be elected, you must obtain at least 270 who, gathered in an Electoral College, will be responsible for appointing the future tenant of the White House on December 17. Members of the House of Representatives and the Senate will be asked to certify the election results on January 6, 2025.

In 2021, it was this session that was interrupted during the historic assault on the Capitol by supporters of Donald Trump. The President of the United States will be inaugurated and sworn in on January 20.

7:20 p.m. | 'Don't stay away from this election': Joe Biden calls on Americans to vote

Joe Biden urged Americans “not to stay away from this election.” On his X account, the current American president recalled that “the polling stations are still open”.

7:13 p.m. | Why do Americans always vote on a Tuesday?

The principle of a single day of voting throughout the country was adopted in 1845.
The beginning of November is chosen for two reasons: the harvests are over and the snow has not yet made the roads impassable. The day remains to be determined. At this time, travel was done on horseback and in carts. It takes one day to travel there, one day to vote and one day to return.

Sunday, a day of worship, is excluded. Saturday would not allow us to be back in time for church. Monday means leaving on Sunday, also impossible. Wednesday is market day. Tuesday therefore appears to be a good compromise. The following Tuesday, the first Monday of November is retained, which makes it possible to span All Saints' Day and the first of the month reserved for accounting for traders. The vote therefore always takes place between November 2 and 8. In this year 2024, it will take place Tuesday November 5.

7:09 p.m. | “It’s incomprehensible…”: the refusal of major American newspapers to choose a candidate questions and worries

For the first time in decades, several major American newspapers, including the Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times, have chosen not to publicly support a presidential candidate. This decision caused a shock wave, both within the press and among readers. And questions the future of democracy and journalism in the United States. We explain everything to you in this article.

Photo AFP/ Brendan SMIALO

7:04 p.m. | False bomb threats attributed to Russia

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger told reporters on Tuesday that non-credible threats that disrupted voting at two polling stations came from Russia.

“We've heard threats of Russian origin,” Raffensperger said, clarifying that “in the interest of public safety, we're always checking on that, and we'll just continue to be very responsible when we hear about those kinds of things.” .”

7 p.m. | Kamala Harris asks Americans to “get out and vote”

“I encourage everyone to get out and vote,” Kamala Harris, who could become the first female president of the United States, said on local radio. The Democratic candidate added that this election was an “inflection point” and insisted on the two “very different visions of the future of the nation” proposed.

6:50 p.m. | Trump says he will admit defeat 'if the election is fair'

Donald Trump said he would be ready to recognize his defeat against Kamala Harris if “the election is fair”, while raising the specter of possible electoral fraud, after voting in Florida on Tuesday.

“If I lose an election, if the election is fair, I will be the first to recognize it. So far, I think it has been fair,” declared the Republican candidate for the White House.

Earlier, the former president said he was “very confident” when voting in Florida.

6:40 p.m. | Donald Trump or Kamala Harris, what does that change for us?

From their way of expressing themselves to their conception of American society to their vision of international relations, Donald Trump and Kamala Harris have nothing in common. And depending on whether he or she enters the White House on January 20, for Americans as for the rest of the world, we can expect upheavals… or continuity. Our article

6:35 p.m. | 82 million people have already voted

6:30 p.m. | Good evening !

Welcome to this live special presidential election in the United States. Here you can follow all the American news until early morning and the arrival of the first results.

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