The Home Stretch: The latest in election news on Oct. 22

Two weeks till Election Day. Conventional political wisdom states that these last few weeks are when undecided voters will break one way or the other — or decide not to vote at all.

Here are the highlights of what’s happening today.

Tracking the trail

Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee, will sit down for two interviews: one with NBC’s Hallie Jackson that will air at 6:30 tonight and another with Telemundo’s Julio Vaqueiro. Both will be taped in Washington, D.C.

Former President Donald Trump, the Republican nominee, held a roundtable with Florida Latino leaders at his Trump National Doral golf club. He wraps up his day with an evening rally in Greensboro, N.C.

The vice presidential hopefuls aren’t on the sidelines. Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic VP candidate, is probably feeling at home in the Midwest with rallies in Madison and Racine, Wis. Former President Barack Obama joined him in Madison.

J.D. Vance, the Republican vice presidential hopeful, is holding a rally in Peoria, Ariz.

Where the numbers stand

Polling is a touchy subject, but it’s essentially the only data we have before the official vote counts roll in. Today’s numbers have a little bit of good news and a little bit of bad news for each candidate.

A TIPP poll from Oct. 19-21, with a sample size of 1,268 likely voters, found Trump and Harris tied at 48%.

An Ipsos/Reuters poll from Oct. 16-21 found Harris ahead 48%-45%, among likely voters. She also leads in Morning Consult’s weekly poll 50%-46%.

According to poll aggregates, Harris and Trump are in a statistical dead heat, especially in swing states including Pennsylvania. FiveThirtyEight has Trump at 47.9% in the Keystone State, with Harris at 47.5%.

The U.S. Senate race between incumbent Democrat Senator Bob Casey and Republican David McCormick has been moved from “leans Democratic” to “toss-up” by the Cook Political Report.

Bits and pieces from around the campaigns

This morning, Harris released a plan targeting the economic needs of Latino voters. The slate of proposals includes improved job training programs, aid to start small businesses, an expansion of the Child Tax Credit and benefits from Medicare to ease the burden of long-term home care.

Donald Trump has disrespected and insulted Latino men and communities. As president, I will invest in them. pic.twitter.com/2ZxaHVMoef

— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) October 22, 2024

Trump’s campaign canceled a “Make America Healthy Again” virtual town hall with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Tulsi Gabbard that was scheduled to take place this afternoon, citing scheduling reasons.

Joint RFK/Trump/Tulsi town hall scheduled for today has been canceled at the last minute pic.twitter.com/dmyF2xYGsX

— David Freedlander (@freedlander) October 22, 2024

Rapper and proud Detroit native Eminem will appear with former President Barack Obama at a rally for Harris in his home city tonight. Additionally, Bruce Springsteen will reportedly campaign with Obama and Harris on Thursday in Atlanta.

Following his Sunday campaign appearance at a Bucks County McDonald’s, Trump is selling official “MAGADonald’s” T-shirts on his fundraising website.

Harris will hold a rally in Houston on Friday, focusing on abortion rights. This is a surprising choice considering Texas’ traditionally red status but could be an attempt to boost Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Colin Allred, who hopes to unseat Republican Sen. Ted Cruz.

Politico reports that Trump will record an interview with host Joe Rogan for his podcast “The Joe Rogan Experience.” The taping will also take place in Texas — at Rogan’s Austin studio.

The New York Times reports that 17 million people have already voted in the election nationwide. Here in Pennsylvania, The Secretary of State reports that more than 1 million ballots have already been submitted.

Opinions from around the web

Pundits and columnists are weighing in on the presidential race. Here are a few samples:

• Ingrid Jacques published a USA Today opinion piece entitled “Why is Trump doing so well in the polls? It’s the economy, stupid.” She asserts, “Trump is in a much better place in the polls at this time than he was in 2016 or 2020. And a lot of that has to do with how voters feel about their finances.”

• On the flip side of the economic debate, Eduardo Porter penned “A Trump victory would make America poor again” for the Washington Post. He warns, “America, be afraid. Though each of these proposals alone could cause considerable damage to the economy, together they would conjure a perfect storm of self-inflicted harm.”

• The Wall Street Journal editorial board kept its focus on Trump’s Sunday campaign stop with a piece titled “Trump, Harris and McDonald’s: Her policies would make it harder for young people to flip burgers at fast-food franchises.” The thesis? “It was a nice photo-op. But the fast-food aficionado missed a bigger opportunity to highlight how Kamala Harris’s agenda endangers such jobs and franchise restaurants.”

• For The New York Times, Matthew Walther said “Sorry, Trump. The Issue of Abortion Is Not Going Away.” He states, “If there is one thing we have learned from Republicans during this election, it is that they would like the issue of abortion to disappear.”