By LIBBY CATHEY, ABC News(WASHINGTON) — On the eve of Election Day, President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden have only hours left to make their closing arguments to voters in a contest both are calling the most important of their lifetime.With more than 94 million Americans having already cast their ballots — an early voting record — time is running out for Trump and Biden to sway uncommitted voters.Trump has five rallies in four states — North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin — as both candidates plan to “barnstorm” the states they deem critical in a final full day of campaigning overshadowed by coronavirus cases rising in nearly every election battleground.Biden takes to Ohio and Pennsylvania, closing out the day at a drive-in rally with Lady Gaga in Pittsburgh. His running mate, California Sen. Kamala Harris, is also campaigning in Pennsylvania and finishes her day at a drive-in rally with John Legend in Philadelphia. Their ticket’s top surrogate, former President Barack Obama, is campaigning in Georgia and Florida.Vice President Mike Pence has a pair of rallies in Pennsylvania — a state Trump won by one point in 2016 and one where a Democratic win this time would leave him with an exceedingly narrow path to victory — before joining Trump on the trail in Michigan.Here is how the Monday is developing. All times Eastern:Nov 02, 10:34 amCoronavirus surging in every key swing state in final hours of votingWith Election Day just hours away, coronavirus cases are rising in every key political battleground state around the country, according to an ABC News analysis, a striking reality that highlights the inextricable link between the pandemic and the 2020 race, despite the president’s best efforts to refocus the conversation elsewhere.As deaths and hospitalizations are rising as well, the outbreak is hitting in record numbers nationwide — but the virus is spreading faster in case per population in many hotly contested states, including Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Minnesota, Michigan, North Carolina, Nevada, Ohio, Wisconsin and Texas, according to the analysis of data from Johns Hopkins University.Just this week, Pennsylvania, one of the most likely tipping points in the election, broke its single-day new case record this week with over cases 2,700 reported — the highest since the start of the pandemic. In Wisconsin, there have been more than 150,000 new cases in just the past two months — nearly double all the cases reported from March through the end of August combined. And Georgia, which has emerged as a competitive state, is experiencing a “surge.”Exactly how the most recent rise in cases in key swing states, which began earlier this fall, will ultimately impact the presidential election remains unclear, but experts said its effects have already been felt. Many say the surge in cases is likely to hurt the president at the ballot box, though a Trump campaign official Sunday suggested it may be to their advantage to have Democrats talking about it so much, as fear over the outbreak could prevent those more likely to support Biden from turning out on Election Day.Record numbers of mail-in ballots have been requested, though, and early voting is smashing total tallies from 2016 and fears of getting the virus do not appear to be suppressing the drive to vote in person, even in places where cases are surging, experts said.-ABC News’ Olivia Rubin, Soorin Kim and Mark NicholsNov 02, 10:02 amTrump to watch election night unfold from White HouseWhite House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany in a Fox News interview this morning, appearing as Trump’s “campaign adviser,” confirmed he plans to be at the White House on election night.”We’ll be there at the White House in D.C.,” McEnany said.The Trump campaign had reportedly planned a traditional campaign party at his hotel, also off Pennsylvania Avenue, in Washington. But the president told reporters last week that he was considering other options including staying at the White House or spending time between the two. The District’s coronavirus precautions limit indoor gatherings to 50 people.The Democratic ticket, meanwhile, is slated to be in Wilmington, Delaware, on election night.-ABC News’ Jordyn PhelpsNov 02, 9:44 amOverview: Trump rallies in five states, Biden focus on Pennsylvania With the clock ticking down until Election Day, Trump and Biden have only hours left to make their closing arguments to voters, and with more than 94 million already having cast their ballots, the pool of uncommitted voters they’re hoping to win over is thinning out. On the final full day of campaigning, the candidates return to the swing states they deem critical in their pathways to the White House the election — but the trips come as the the contest is overshadowed by coronavirus cases rising across the country and in nearly every election battleground.Trump and Biden are competing amid a pandemic and continue to paint contrasting realities of the COVID-19 landscape, with Trump insisting “COVID, COVID, COVID’ — as he puts it — will disappear from media reports after the election, saying the country is “rounding the turn” while Biden acknowledges ending the pandemic won’t be like “flipping a switch” if he’s elected. Continuing what Biden has deemed “superspreader” events, Trump has five rallies in four states Monday — in Fayetteville, North Carolina at 11:30 a.m., in Avoca, Pennsylvania, at 2:30 p.m., in Traverse City, Michigan, at 5 p.m., and in Kenosha, Wisconsin, at 8 p.m., — before traveling back to where he ended his campaign in 2016: Grand Rapids, Michigan, for a final rally.Other than making a quick side trip to neighboring Cleveland, Ohio, Biden is focused on barnstorming what is shaping to be the pivotal battleground of the election — Pennsylvania — with events in Beaver County at 2:40 p.m. and in Pittsburgh at 5:40 p.m. with members of the African American community. He closes out the day at a drive in rally with Lady Gaga in Pittsburgh. Biden’s running mate, California Sen. Kamala Harris, is also campaigning in Pennsylvania and finishes her day at a drive-in rally with John Legend in Philadelphia. Their ticket’s top surrogate, former President Barack Obama, is spreading out their efforts with events in Georgia and Florida. Vice President Mike Pence has a pair of rallies in Pennsylvania — a state Trump won by one point in 2016 and one where a Democratic win this time would leave him with an exceedingly narrow path to victory — before joining Trump on the trail in Michigan. With a nation on edge, roiled by tension and palpable high anxiety on the eve of Election Day, the president seems more determined than ever to exploit divisions as his best hope of closing the gap in the polls. Trump denied to reporters Sunday night that he would try to declare some sort of “victory” on election night but added, “as soon as the election is over, we’re going in with our lawyers.” His comments come on the heels of repeated attacks to the Supreme Court for not allowing GOP efforts to block the counting of ballots arriving in the days after the election in key battleground states.Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
