Trump concludes MSG rally with anti-immigrant rhetoric

Trump was introduced to the stage by Melania in an unannounced appearance.

ByAlexandra Hutzler, Ivan Pereira, Tal Axelrod, Meredith Deliso, Emily Chang, David Brennan, and Julia Reinstein
Last Updated: October 28, 2024, 6:39 AM EDT

The race for the White House remained essentially a dead heat on Sunday -- with nine days to go until Election Day.

Former President Donald Trump delivered a speech Sunday afternoon at New York's Madison Square Garden. After making several stops in Philadelphia on Sunday, Vice President Kamala Harris held a rally there Sunday afternoon.

Key Headlines

Here's how the news developed:
Oct 28, 6:03 am

Almost 42 million voters have cast a vote

Almost 42 million Americans have cast a vote through early voting methods, as of Sunday afternoon, according to data from the University of Florida's Election Lab.

The about 41.9 million recorded mail and early in-person votes were evenly split with about 21 million mail ballots returned nationally and about the same cast at in-person early voting polling sites across the country, the data showed.

Early voting options are now open to voters in 50 states and the District of Columbia. Many early voting periods will last until the weekend before Election Day.

Oct 26, 2024, 1:09 PM EDT

Harris to visit doctor's office to highlight reproductive rights

Vice President Harris will visit a doctor’s office in Portage, Michigan, on Saturday to continue her focus on reproductive rights before rallying with Michelle Obama, according to her campaign.

"She will meet with Michigan healthcare providers and medical students and discuss how Michiganders’ reproductive rights are directly threatened by Trump’s plans to ban abortion nationwide," the campaign said in a statement.

-ABC News' Will McDuffie, Gabriella Abdul-Hakim and Fritz Farrow

Oct 26, 2024, 12:09 PM EDT

Trump claims abortion has 'dropped way down' as an issue for voters

As Vice President Kamala Harris seeks to highlight abortion rights as a top issue this election, former President Donald Trump claimed Saturday that abortion is no longer front and center for voters.

In a new Truth Social post, Trump reiterated his abortion policy, suggesting the issue been left to the states.

"Abortion has dropped way down as an issue. States are already giving it to the PEOPLE to Vote, which is what everyone wanted," Trump posted ahead of his rally in Michigan.

Recent polls have shown that abortion and reproductive rights are among one of the key issues for voters.

A survey released by KFF earlier this month showed that abortion has emerged as the most important issue in the November election for women under 30.

-ABC News' Kelsey Walsh, Lalee Ibssa and Soo Rin Kim

Oct 26, 2024, 7:31 AM EDT

Over 38M votes already cast as early voting open in all states

Over 38 million votes have been cast through early voting methods as of Saturday morning, according to data from the Election Lab at the University of Florida.

Over 20 million of those votes came from mail ballots while the remainder have been cast as in-person early voting ballot sites, according to the data.
All 50 states and the District of Columbia have begun early voting.

Residents vote in early voting at a park building in Detroit on Oct. 19, 2024, in Detroit, Michigan.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Among the states that commenced their early voting option this weekend is Michigan a key battleground state that is opening in person poll sites for the first time.

Though voting had begun in some counties earlier, it will now be available to everybody across the state as of Saturday.

Oct 26, 2024, 1:31 AM EDT

Trump says judges 'didn’t have what it took' to overturn 2020 election

Former President Donald Trump sat down for the Joe Rogan podcast for three hours Friday evening for a freewheeling conversation about issues ranging from the economy to the environment to the stakes of the upcoming election as well taking the opportunity to relitigate the 2020 one, partially blaming judges for not overturning the 2020 election results.

Trump got combative with Rogan when Rogan asked why Trump didn’t publish comprehensive evidence of fraud he claims was going on in 2020. Trump said that he did, but falsely argued he lost because judges “didn’t have what it took.”

“The judges don't want to touch it. They would say, you don't have standing," Trump said. "They didn't rule on the merits. They ruled the merits never got there. The judges didn't have what it took to turn over an election.”

Trump once again pushed for single day voting and paper ballots, spreading fears about voting machines as people head to the polls.

“Right now, we have the sophisticated machine that goes up to heaven. It goes all over the place and down and around, and they say we'll need two weeks to figure out who the hell won the election," Trump said. "Unless you have paper ballots, it can never be an honest election. That's a big statement. We should go to paper ballots."

Trump also said that if Harris loses the election it’ll be because of the Democrats not holding a primary and choosing Gov. Tim Walz as vice president.