A turbulent election campaign ends as voters select Harris or Trump; KIRO hosts weigh in

A divided America weighed a stark choice for the nation’s future Tuesday as a presidential election campaign marked by upheaval and rancor approached its finale.

Voters were deciding whether to send Republican Donald Trump back to the White House or make Vice President Kamala Harris the first female president. Polls closed in Georgia, one of the closely fought battlegrounds that could decide the election, along with a handful of other states. On Election Day, tens of millions of Americans added their ballots to the 84 million cast early as they chose between two candidates with drastically different temperaments and visions for the country.

Trump and Harris each notched early wins in reliably Republican and Democratic states, respectively. Trump won Kentucky and Indiana, and Harris took Vermont.

The economy and immigration are the top issues facing the country, voters said, but the future of democracy was also a leading motivator for many Americans casting a ballot in Tuesday’s presidential election. AP VoteCast, an expansive survey of more than 110,000 voters nationwide, found a country mired in negativity and desperate for change.

Those casting Election Day ballots mostly encountered a smooth process, with isolated reports of hiccups that regularly happen, including long lines, technical issues and ballot printing errors.

Harris has promised to work across the aisle to tackle economic worries and other issues without radically departing from the course set by President Joe Biden. Trump has vowed to replace thousands of federal workers with loyalists, impose sweeping tariffs on allies and foes alike, and stage the largest deportation operation in U.S. history.

Harris and Trump entered Election Day focused on seven swing states, five of them carried by Trump in 2016 before they flipped to Biden in 2020: the “blue wall” of Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin as well as Arizona and Georgia. Nevada and North Carolina, which Democrats and Republicans respectively carried in the last two elections, also were closely contested.

Trump voted in Palm Beach, Florida, near his Mar-a-Lago club, and said afterward that he was feeling “very confident.”

Harris, the Democratic vice president, did phone interviews with radio stations in the battleground states, then visited Democratic National Committee headquarters in Washington carrying a box of Doritos — her go-to snack.

“This truly represents the best of who we are,” Harris told a room of cheering staffers. She was handed a cellphone by supporters doing phone banking, and when asked by reporters how she was feeling, the vice president held up a phone and responded, “Gotta talk to voters.”

The closeness of the race and the number of states in play raised the likelihood that, once again, a victor might not be known on election night.

Trump said Tuesday that he had no plans to tell his supporters to refrain from violence if Harris wins, because they “are not violent people.” Asked about accepting the race’s results, he said, “If it’s a fair election, I’d be the first one to acknowledge it.” He visited a nearby campaign office to thank staffers before a party at a nearby convention center.

After her DNC stop, Harris planned to attend a party at her alma mater, Howard University in Washington.

Federal, state and local officials have expressed confidence in the integrity of the nation’s election systems. They nonetheless were braced to contend with what they say is an unprecedented level of foreign disinformation — particularly from Russia and Iran — as well as the possibility of physical violence or cyberattacks.

Both sides have armies of lawyers in anticipation of legal challenges on and after Election Day. And law enforcement agencies nationwide are on high alert for potential violence.

Each candidate would take the country into new terrain

Harris, 60, would be the first woman, Black woman and person of South Asian descent to serve as president. She also would be the first sitting vice president to win the White House in 36 years.

Trump, 78, would be the oldest president ever elected. He would also be the first defeated president in 132 years to win another term in the White House, and the first person convicted of a felony to take over the Oval Office.

He survived one assassination attempt by millimeters at a July rally. Secret Service agents foiled a second attempt in September.

In Scranton, Pennsylvania, Liza Fortt arrived at her polling location in a wheelchair and not feeling well. But she said she ventured out anyway to vote for Harris.

“It means a lot to me and my grandkids, my granddaughters, my nieces. … I was just waiting for this day to come,” said Fortt, who is 74 and Black. She said she never thought she’d have such an opportunity, to cast a ballot for a Black woman in a presidential race.

“I’m proud, to see a woman, not only a woman, but a Black woman,” Fortt said.

First-time voter Jasmine Perez, 26, cast her ballot at the Las Vegas Raiders’ stadium in Nevada for Trump, citing his spiritual values.

“What really attracted me to Donald Trump is I’m a Christian,” Perez said, noting of the former president, “I like that he openly promotes Christianity in America.”

Harris, pointing to the warnings of Trump’s former aides, has labeled him a “fascist” and blamed Trump for putting women’s lives in danger by nominating three of the justices who overturned Roe v. Wade. In the closing hours of the campaign, she tried to strike a more positive tone and went all of Monday without saying her Republican opponent’s name.

JD Jorgensen, an independent voter in Black Mountain, North Carolina, which was hit hard by Hurricane Helene, said voters should have made up their minds by now.

“I think that the candidates, both being in the public eye as long as they both have been, if you’re on the fence, you hadn’t really been paying attention,” said Jorgensen, 35.

KIRO Newsradio hosts address the 2024 presidential election

Gee Scott and Ursula Reutin of KIRO Newsradio’s “The Gee and Ursula Show” discussed what’s at stake ahead of the polls closing for the 2024 presidential election.

Gee isn’t a Trump supporter, but he acknowledged his personal situation likely won’t be affected whether Trump or Harris get elected.

“I’m speaking for myself now. I personally will be fine. My household will be fine,” Gee said. “The stock market is probably gonna be fine. Everything in my life is gonna be smooth. I’m going to work tomorrow. I get to go see my son. My daughter just won her trial in court. In my life, my life is great.”

He went on to say that he does believe a second Trump term will negatively affect immigrants who live in the U.S.

However, when I think about life, I tend to not only think about myself, I think about the immigrants,” Gee said. “That are in this country, right, that are unfairly treated, but they are the backbone of this country and I don’t need to go through the history to tell you why. I also think about those marginalized communities that don’t have a a hand.”

Ursula addressed a different topic in her comments about what’s at stake in the presidential election, saying she will feel “incredibly proud,” “relived” and “grateful” if Harris defeats Trump.

“Again, I’m choosing joy. I’m choosing optimism, and I could be spectacularly wrong tomorrow. And then I’ll deal with what that is tomorrow,” Ursula said. “But if she wins, I think it will be a victory for all of us. And I mean, all of us in this country, it will be a victory for the US Constitution. It will be a victory for our democracy. And it will mean that human decency still matters.

She added a Harris win would be significant for women as well.

“It would be monumental for women who I think will end up being the biggest difference makers in this election cycle.”

On the other side, Ursula said that while a victory for Trump won’t cause the sun disappear, a cloud will hang over the U.S.

“I mean, if Donald Trump wins, yes, the sun will still rise, the sun will still set, but I will feel profound sadness and disappointment,” Ursula said. “There will be a very dark cloud, I think over this country over the next four years and the repercussions of another Trump presidency will be felt for decades.”

Switching directions, KIRO Newsradio News Director Charlie Harger joined “The Jake and Spike Show” ahead of the release of the election results Tuesday and called out a “sleeper issue” on ballots in the state of Washington.

There is a possibility both the Washington State House of Representatives and the Washington State Senate could end up with a Democratic super majority. That maeans more than 60% of each legislative body will be Democrats in charge.

“If that were to happen, it makes it a lot easier to get state Constitutional amendments on the ballot,” Harger said. “So, a lot of these initiatives that have been long sought by Democrats could be that much easier to get on the ballot in front of Washington citizens.

Contributing: The Associated Press; Steve Coogan, MyNorthwest