Historic turnout expected in US as Donald Trump and Joe Biden race to finish line


Joyce Karam
  • English
  • Arabic

Turnout is expected to surge as the US enters the last 48 hours of a highly consequential and polarising US election.

More than 93 million Americans have already voted, according to the US Elections Project, more than 67 per cent of the total votes cast in the 2016 presidential election.

California, Texas and Florida lead the states in early voting and Democrats lead Republicans 45.6 per cent to 30.3 per cent in turnout.

These numbers suggest there will be a record turnout in this election, surpassing the nearly 139 million votes cast in 2016.

In an effort to pull in the last voters, President Donald Trump and Joe Biden will campaign in five swing states that will probably decide the outcome.

Final polls before the vote show a competitive race between the two candidates who set out their closing messages in drastically opposing ways.

Mr Trump touted reopening the US economy and “getting back to normal” despite a second wave of Covid-19 infections and more than 230,000 dead in the country.

Mr Biden made much of his campaign about a tougher approach to handling the pandemic and reopening safely.

The latest polls show a close race in Florida, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania and Michigan.

A Washington-ABC poll released on Sunday showed Mr Trump ahead of Mr Biden by 2 per cent in Florida but trailing him by 7 per cent in Pennsylvania.

An Emerson poll showed Mr Biden leading by 7 per cent in Michigan, while Mr Trump led by 1 per cent in Iowa.

In the last hours before election day, Mr Trump was due to travel to Michigan, Florida, Georgia and Iowa, states he won in 2016 but where he is defending or trailing now.

Mr Biden will spend the last day in Pennsylvania, with four stops planned in the state that holds critical 20 electoral votes.

His nominee for vice president, Kamala Harris, will be in Georgia and North Carolina.

No Democrat has won Georgia since 1992 but polls show a lead for the Biden-Harris ticket there.

As he trails with seniors and the young, Mr Trump is trying to make inroads with black and Hispanic voters.

On Sunday, he tweeted an unsubstantiated claim that Mr Biden called black men “super predators".

But it is an uphill battle for Mr Trump to win the votes of black men.

The country’s first black president, Barack Obama, accompanied his former vice president Mr Biden in the last stretch of the campaign.

“Remember when Republicans were saying, ‘Let Detroit go bankrupt'? Now they might as well be saying, ‘Let America get Covid’," Mr Obama said in Michigan.

A video of him scoring a three-pointer on a basketball court went viral.

The surge in turnout includes younger voters.

Democratic analytics company TargetSmart says more than 6 million under the age of 30 have voted, which is three times the number of those early votes in 2016.

Vidaamuyarchi

Director: Magizh Thirumeni

Stars: Ajith Kumar, Arjun Sarja, Trisha Krishnan, Regina Cassandra

Rating: 4/5

 

Globalization and its Discontents Revisited
Joseph E. Stiglitz
W. W. Norton & Company

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Who are the Sacklers?

The Sackler family is a transatlantic dynasty that owns Purdue Pharma, which manufactures and markets OxyContin, one of the drugs at the centre of America's opioids crisis. The family is well known for their generous philanthropy towards the world's top cultural institutions, including Guggenheim Museum, the National Portrait Gallery, Tate in Britain, Yale University and the Serpentine Gallery, to name a few. Two branches of the family control Purdue Pharma.

Isaac Sackler and Sophie Greenberg were Jewish immigrants who arrived in New York before the First World War. They had three sons. The first, Arthur, died before OxyContin was invented. The second, Mortimer, who died aged 93 in 2010, was a former chief executive of Purdue Pharma. The third, Raymond, died aged 97 in 2017 and was also a former chief executive of Purdue Pharma. 

It was Arthur, a psychiatrist and pharmaceutical marketeer, who started the family business dynasty. He and his brothers bought a small company called Purdue Frederick; among their first products were laxatives and prescription earwax remover.

Arthur's branch of the family has not been involved in Purdue for many years and his daughter, Elizabeth, has spoken out against it, saying the company's role in America's drugs crisis is "morally abhorrent".

The lawsuits that were brought by the attorneys general of New York and Massachussetts named eight Sacklers. This includes Kathe, Mortimer, Richard, Jonathan and Ilene Sackler Lefcourt, who are all the children of either Mortimer or Raymond. Then there's Theresa Sackler, who is Mortimer senior's widow; Beverly, Raymond's widow; and David Sackler, Raymond's grandson.

Members of the Sackler family are rarely seen in public.

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INFO

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Marathon results

Men:

 1. Titus Ekiru(KEN) 2:06:13 

2. Alphonce Simbu(TAN) 2:07:50 

3. Reuben Kipyego(KEN) 2:08:25 

4. Abel Kirui(KEN) 2:08:46 

5. Felix Kemutai(KEN) 2:10:48  

Women:

1. Judith Korir(KEN) 2:22:30 

2. Eunice Chumba(BHR) 2:26:01 

3. Immaculate Chemutai(UGA) 2:28:30 

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5. Aleksandra Morozova(RUS) 2:33:01  

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Date started: 2012

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Based: Dubai, UAE

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Investors: Technology Development Fund, Silicon Badia, Beco Capital, Vostok New Ventures, Endeavour Catalyst, Crescent Enterprises’ CE-Ventures, Saudi Technology Ventures and IFC

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Three stars

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The flights
Emirates, Etihad and Malaysia Airlines all fly direct from the UAE to Kuala Lumpur and on to Penang from about Dh2,300 return, including taxes. 
 

Where to stay
In Kuala Lumpur, Element is a recently opened, futuristic hotel high up in a Norman Foster-designed skyscraper. Rooms cost from Dh400 per night, including taxes. Hotel Stripes, also in KL, is a great value design hotel, with an infinity rooftop pool. Rooms cost from Dh310, including taxes. 


In Penang, Ren i Tang is a boutique b&b in what was once an ancient Chinese Medicine Hall in the centre of Little India. Rooms cost from Dh220, including taxes.
23 Love Lane in Penang is a luxury boutique heritage hotel in a converted mansion, with private tropical gardens. Rooms cost from Dh400, including taxes. 
In Langkawi, Temple Tree is a unique architectural villa hotel consisting of antique houses from all across Malaysia. Rooms cost from Dh350, including taxes.

The essentials

What: Emirates Airline Festival of Literature

When: Friday until March 9

Where: All main sessions are held in the InterContinental Dubai Festival City

Price: Sessions range from free entry to Dh125 tickets, with the exception of special events.

Hot Tip: If waiting for your book to be signed looks like it will be timeconsuming, ask the festival’s bookstore if they have pre-signed copies of the book you’re looking for. They should have a bunch from some of the festival’s biggest guest authors.

Information: www.emirateslitfest.com
 

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Dhadak 2

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Rating: 1/5

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Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg

Barcelona v Liverpool, Wednesday, 11pm (UAE).

Second leg

Liverpool v Barcelona, Tuesday, May 7, 11pm

Games on BeIN Sports

The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting 

2. Prayer 

3. Hajj 

4. Shahada 

5. Zakat 

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Uefa Champions League Group F

Manchester City v Hoffenheim, midnight (Wednesday, UAE)

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting

2. Prayer

3. Hajj

4. Shahada

5. Zakat 

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The years Ramadan fell in May

1987

1954

1921

1888

U19 WORLD CUP, WEST INDIES

UAE group fixtures (all in St Kitts)
Saturday 15 January: v Canada
Thursday 20 January: v England
Saturday 22 January: v Bangladesh

UAE squad
Alishan Sharafu (captain), Shival Bawa, Jash Giyanani, Sailles Jaishankar, Nilansh Keswani, Aayan Khan, Punya Mehra, Ali Naseer, Ronak Panoly, Dhruv Parashar, Vinayak Raghavan, Soorya Sathish, Aryansh Sharma, Adithya Shetty, Kai Smith