While US election day officially falls on November 3, voters in several key swing states that will determine the next president have already begun casting their ballots by mail and in person. The unusually high volume of mail-in ballots this year – and delays in the US postal system – as Covid-19 ravages the United States means there is a high probability that the election results will not be fully available until several weeks after election day.
The winner of the national popular vote does not necessarily win the presidency because of the electoral college system. Instead, each state has a certain number of “electors” based on population. These electors typically choose the next US president based on whichever candidate won the plurality of their state’s popular vote.
The majority of states reliably vote Republican or Democratic every year, so this year’s election hinges on a small slice of voters in as many as 14 battleground states. Each state has wide discretion over its own voting rules and ballots. Early in-person voting and mail-in voting have already started in many of these key states.
Some states may announce a winner on election night, while others will have to wait longer to fully count the mail-in ballots. Here are the key deadlines for in-person and mail-in voting in each of the 14 battleground states:
No ballots accepted after election day
These states will not accept any mail-in ballots that arrive after November 3, increasing the odds that they could announce a winner on election night – if they can count the ballots that arrive by post quickly enough.
Florida
· Early voting: October 19-November 1
· Mail-in ballot request deadline: October 24
Arizona
· Early voting: October 7-October 30
· Mail-in ballot request deadline: October 23
Colorado
· Early voting: October 19-November 2
· Every registered voter will receive a mail-in ballot
New Hampshire
· No early voting
· Mail-in ballot request deadline: November 2
Ballot arrival date pending litigation
Ongoing litigation will ultimately determine the cut-off date for these states to count ballots that arrive after election day. Regardless of the pending court decisions, ballots in each of these states must be postmarked by November 3 in order to count.
Pennsylvania
· Early voting: September 14-October 27
· Mail-in ballot request deadline: October 27
· Current ballot arrival deadline: November 6
Wisconsin
· Early voting: October 20-November 1
· Mail-in ballot request deadline: October 29
· Current ballot arrival deadline: November 3
North Carolina
· Early voting: October 15-October 31
· Mail-in ballot request deadline: October 27
· Current ballot arrival deadline: November 6
Georgia
· Early voting: October 12-October 30
· Mail-in ballot request deadline: October 30
· Current ballot arrival deadline: November 3
Ballots accepted after election day
These states will accept mail-in ballots that arrive after November 3, decreasing the odds that they could announce a winner on election night. Ballots must be postmarked by either November 2 or November 3, depending on the state, in order to count.
Michigan
· Early voting: September 24-November 2
· Mail-in ballot request deadline: October 30
· Ballot arrival deadline: November 17
Ohio
· Early voting: October 6-November 2
· Mail-in ballot request deadline: October 31
· Ballot arrival deadline: November 13
Nevada
· Early voting: October 17-October 30
· Every registered voter will receive a mail-in ballot
· Ballot arrival deadline: November 10
Minnesota
· Early voting: September 18-November 2
· Mail-in ballot request deadline: November 2
· Ballot arrival deadline: November 10
Virginia
· Early voting: September 18-October 31
· Mail-in ballot request deadline: October 23
· Ballot arrival deadline: November 6
Texas
· Early voting: October 13-October 30
· Mail-in ballot request deadline: October 23
· Ballot arrival deadline: November 4
The studios taking part (so far)
- Punch
- Vogue Fitness
- Sweat
- Bodytree Studio
- The Hot House
- The Room
- Inspire Sports (Ladies Only)
- Cryo
So what is Spicy Chickenjoy?
Just as McDonald’s has the Big Mac, Jollibee has Spicy Chickenjoy – a piece of fried chicken that’s crispy and spicy on the outside and comes with a side of spaghetti, all covered in tomato sauce and topped with sausage slices and ground beef. It sounds like a recipe that a child would come up with, but perhaps that’s the point – a flavourbomb combination of cheap comfort foods. Chickenjoy is Jollibee’s best-selling product in every country in which it has a presence.
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
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