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2024 election updates: Harris says Trump 'fanning the fuel' of division after rally

"It is absolutely something that is intended," Harris says of racist rhetoric.

Last Updated: October 28, 2024, 5:11 PM EDT

As we head into the final full week of campaigning before Election Day, the latest ABC News/Ipsos poll shows Kamala Harris with a slight 51-47% lead over Donald Trump among likely voters nationally -- but the polls in the battleground states remain essentially deadlocked within the margin of error.

Fallout continues over racist comments made at Trump's big rally on Sunday at Madison Square Garden and Harris is preparing for her "closing argument" Tuesday night on the Ellipse near the Capitol and White House in Washington.

Oct 28, 4:40 pm

More than 45 million Americans have voted early

More than 45 million Americans have voted early as of 4 p.m. ET Monday, according to the Election Lab at the University of Florida.

Of the total number of early votes, 22,775,211 were cast in person and 22,472,909 were returned by mail.

Voters line up to cast their ballots at the Stamford Government Center on the first day of early voting in Stamford, Conn., Oct. 21, 2024.
John Moore/Getty Images

2:04 PM EDT

Elon Musk's America PAC posts, then deletes, video calling Harris a 'C-Word'

Elon Musk's America PAC deleted a video that called Harris a "C-Word," using a wordplay to suggest an expletive, but instead calling her a "communist."

"America really can’t afford a ‘C-Word’ in the White House right now," the super PAC wrote as it introduced the video on X. The post was later deleted.

The ad began with a warning: "WARNING This ad contains multiple instances of the C word. Viewer discretion is advised."

"Kamala Harris is a C word. You heard that right? A big old C word. In fact, all of the other C words think she's the biggest C word of them all," a narrator said in the video.

Then with an image of a cat in a Soviet officer's uniform and an altered image of Harris wearing a Soviet hat, the video revealed the word in question was "communist," even though the video was clearly hinting at the expletive.

"That's right. She's a tax hiking, regulation loving, gun-grabbing communist. And the worst part, she's proud of it," the narrator says.

ABC News has reached out to America PAC about the video.

-ABC News' Benjamin Siegel and Soorin Kim

1:30 PM EDT

Biden calls Trump's rally 'embarrassing' and 'beneath any president'

President Joe Biden criticized Trump's rally at Madison Square Garden, where he and other speakers ramped up anti-immigrant rhetoric.

“It’s embarrassing. Just simply embarrassing. It’s beneath any president, but that's what we're getting used to," Biden said. "That's why this election is so important. You know, most presidential scholars I've spoken to talk about the single most consequential thing about a president is character. Character. And -- and he puts that in question every time he opens his mouth.”

President Joe Biden speaks with reporters after casting his early-voting ballot for the 2024 general elections, Oct. 28, 2024, at a polling station in New Castle, Del.
Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP

With just over a week to go until Election Day, Biden was asked if he’d be on the trail with the vice president this week, but he made no mention of any joint events, which have been rare this election. Instead, he said he’s been on the trail where the campaign thinks he can help the most and will be in Pennsylvania this week.

And for the first time, he spoke out on Elon Musk’s $1 million giveaway to registered voters who sign a petition supporting the First and Second amendments, at first sarcastically saying, “Tell him I’m registered," before calling it “totally inappropriate."

-ABC News' Justin Gomez

1:20 PM EDT

Biden casts his vote early in Delaware

President Joe Biden cast his ballot after waiting in line for 30 minutes.

"Joseph Biden now voting," a poll worker said inside the room after checking the president's ID.

The president also assisted a woman in a wheelchair through the line and into the voting location.

After he cast his vote, Biden was asked if this was a bittersweet moment for him, given that he had once been at the top of the Democratic ticket, but he said, "No, this is just sweet."

-ABC News' Justin Gomez

1:00 PM EDT

Nearly 25% of Michigan's active registered voters have cast their ballot

More than 250,000 voters cast ballots during the first two days of in-person statewide early voting in the swing state, and over 1.5 million Michigan voters have submitted absentee ballots, Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson announced at a press conference on Monday.

Benson said that 24% of the state’s active registered voters have by now already cast their ballot.

Signs direct voters to a ballot drop-off location in Denver, Col., Oct. 25, 2024.
David Zalubowski/AP

Benson also highlighted some demographic breakdowns about who has voted early in Michigan so far. Almost two-thirds of Michigan citizens who voted by mail are older than 60, but 61% of those who early voted so far are under 60, and 13.5% of early voters are under 30. Benson added that "of all the votes cast to date in Michigan's elections, 55% are from women and 44% are from men."

-ABC News' Oren Oppenheim

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